Working retail is a reinforcement of the lesson that people only hear what they want to hear. Last week, before the title was announced, I had a guy asked me if I had a date/title for the new Harry Potter book. While I’m in the middle of giving him a hard time, his friend walks up and we have the following conversation:
Friend: You’re not asking about Harry Potter book seven again, are you?
Guy: Yeah.
Friend (shakes head): Man…
Me: Yeah, I asked him if he wanted me to laugh now or wait until he left.
Guy: You are laughing now.
Friend: He asks everywhere we go.
Guy looks away.
Friend: But I do have a question. When is the audio book coming out?
Me: The HP book seven audio book?
Friend: Yeah.
Guy cracks up.
Me: Whenever the book does?
Friend: Oh, so it’s not coming out earlier?
Head, meet counter. I should have realized that this was just a sign of what was to come once the title was announced. I’ve done this enough. You would think I would remember. All yesterday, since the title must have been mentioned on the news, I had people coming in, doing their shopping, and I was ringing them up they would ask, “Oh, and could you add the new Harry Potter to that as well?”
“Book Six, The Half-blood Prince, in paperback?”
“No, the new one. I saw it on the news.”
Head, desk. Head, desk. Head, desk.
At least they were really nice about it when I informed them that while the HP had a title, it did not have a street date.
6 comments:
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*sigh*
The extent of human stupidity will never cease to amaze me.
I've only read the first Potter book, what does that say about me? I liked it okay, but I guess I'm just not a series kind of person, short attention span I guess.
Masses of sympathy and virtual caffeine! And I must tell you, that Amazon is making it worse. I have never read HP (doesn't call to me) but I got an email from Amazon that I can pre-order today!
Sounds like a wind-up to me.
Happy Merry!
BSC, wishing you a Merry Christmas, one day free from the inanity of hapless custoemrs, the depredations of their feral children, and the anguish of caffeine withdrawal headaches!
Stay in your jammies, drink a pot of java, enjoy good company, read a chapter of a favorite book, and know that you have many fans.
"Who was that masked marvel?"
"That was Bookseller Chick!"
The word on the street here is that it will be mid-july. As for the audio, like HP6, it won't come out until the end of August because even Stephen Fry is not allowed to read the book before it comes out, so he will need time to record it.
Deathly Hallows, full of optimism?
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