Feb

11

Mysteries in Bookselling, v.2

2009 at 3pm     Posted by Rebecca Joines Schinsky

It’s been a while since we’ve played the “guess what the customer is looking for” game, and since one of my coworkers had a great request this afternoon, it’s the perfect time for another round.

Here’s how the customer described the book she was looking for:

  • It’s a biography about a woman
  • She’s a comedian
  • She’s in her 50s
  • She has very short hair
  • She’s on BBC all the time

So, what was she looking for?

Related posts:

  1. Mystery Solved!
  2. Mysteries in Bookselling, v.1
  3. What was that about the customer always being right? (Adventures in Bookselling v. 13)
  4. Save the drama for your mama: Adventures in Bookselling, v. 6
  5. And do you have any beaver handpuppets? (Adventures in Bookselling, v.5)
Filed Under Bookselling
Leave a Comment
 

Comments

No Responses to “Mysteries in Bookselling, v.2”

  1. chartroose on February 11th, 2009 3:46 pm

    Oueen Elizabeth? Princess Di? Helen Mirren? Sinead O’Connor? Good Lord!

  2. Tricia on February 11th, 2009 4:03 pm

    “The Funny Thing Is…” – Ellen DeGeneres?

  3. Literate Housewife on February 11th, 2009 4:05 pm

    My guess would be Dame Judy Dench, but I don’t know that she’s considered a comedian.

  4. Alicia on February 11th, 2009 4:14 pm

    I’m guessing the Julie Andrews memoir….but maybe not since she is older than 50 and not a comedian

  5. Megan on February 11th, 2009 4:20 pm

    I have no idea — and I even cheated and tried to Google around for a hint! :)

  6. Chris@bookarama on February 11th, 2009 4:22 pm

    Dame Edna? (lol)

  7. Lenore on February 11th, 2009 4:28 pm

    I’m stumped. Madonna? (hahaha)

  8. Rebecca @ The Book Lady's Blog on February 11th, 2009 4:31 pm

    These are all great (but wrong!) guesses….and Google won’t help you much because, well, let’s just say that the customer’s description wasn’t totally accurate.

  9. Tricia on February 11th, 2009 4:35 pm

    Hillary Clinton?

  10. Jules on February 11th, 2009 4:39 pm

    I”m going to say Lucille Ball but I just pulled that out of thin air. She’s a comedy actress, with short hair, who was on a popular show in the 50′s. So that could = to a short haired, comedian in her 50′s….right? right??

  11. Joseph Zitt on February 11th, 2009 4:59 pm

    These are a constant source of frustration and amusement. Sometimes we can guess on almost no information: yesterday, a teenage girl came into our store and went completely blank of what she was looking for. When I guessed that it was “PS I Loathe You,” the new Clique novel, she looked like I had just crawled into her brain and dug the information out. But it’s often not that hard.

    I’ve posted about this on occasion on my blog “The Path of the Bookseller.” at blog.josephzitt.com. I call it Sellepathy :-)

  12. nanshe on February 11th, 2009 5:10 pm

    I’m wondering which piece of information, if any, was accurate. Hmm… my first thought was Suze Orman because my husband watches her sometimes on PBS which also airs some BBC shows.
    Did she really mean BBC? (BBC America?)
    This is so fun when not face to face with the customer *hehe*
    Oh, I just had a thought… is she wanting a book that’s not even about a woman?!

  13. Elizabeth on February 11th, 2009 5:12 pm

    How many of the things in the customer’s description are true? Any of them?

  14. osarah on February 11th, 2009 5:23 pm

    Geez, I have no idea. Really, none…

  15. Rebecca @ The Book Lady's Blog on February 11th, 2009 5:59 pm

    Two of the pieces of information are accurate, and a third is kind of accurate….but I’m not telling which ones.

  16. nanshe on February 11th, 2009 6:59 pm

    Katie Couric?

  17. Caty on February 11th, 2009 7:03 pm

    My first thought was Dawn French. My second thought was, if the customer’s description is way out, then that’s too close to be correct. My third thought was that I’ve run out of thoughts.

  18. Caty on February 11th, 2009 7:14 pm

    Uh, Dawn French’s *autobiography*, that would be.

    (Brain, meet fingers. Fingers, meet brain. You may find that co-operation before typing would be helpful.)

  19. Joanne on February 11th, 2009 7:15 pm

    My first thought was Joanna Lumley from Absolutely Fabulous, but then I wondered if maybe they were looking for a bio of the actors from Little Britain – they often play women :P

  20. Matt on February 11th, 2009 8:02 pm

    I was thinking Whoopi Goldberg until I read the short-hair hint. But Dawn French doesn’t have short hair either…Oh well…

  21. softdrink on February 11th, 2009 9:26 pm

    Suze Orman? Oh wait, that’s been said. Ellen DeGeneres?

  22. Ti on February 11th, 2009 9:56 pm

    I am going to guess Joanne Lumley of Ab Fab fame. A show that I think is ab fab BTW.

  23. nanshe on February 11th, 2009 10:14 pm

    Judy of ‘Richard and Judy’ ,,, the pair on UK tv (not BBC)

    I think we need another hint :o )

  24. Alexa on February 12th, 2009 9:02 am

    M y first thought was Dawn French or Julie Walters as they both have books out but having read the comments I’ve no idea!

  25. Mystery Solved! « The Book Lady’s Blog on February 12th, 2009 1:18 pm

    [...] Mysteries in Bookselling, v.2 [...]

  26. The Sunday Salon 2.15.09 « The Book Lady’s Blog on February 15th, 2009 11:11 am

    [...] Mysteries in Bookselling, v.2 [...]

  27. Serena (Savvy Verse & Wit) on February 18th, 2009 12:05 pm

    amy sedaris…lol I have no idea

Got something to say?





CommentLuv badge