So, after twenty years at my bookshop in Cecil Court, I have finally taken the plunge, turned the key in the door for the last time and become a book dealer rather than a shop keeper. I am glad so many old customers came into the shop during my last few weeks there, to say goodbye and to leave their contact details, and most of them asked how I felt. Did I feel sad after so long? Was it a wrench to leave?
But the truth is I felt numb; packing up 15,000 books with the fanatical care which comes naturally to a book lover, and moving 300 odd boxes, the only thing I felt was my aching muscles. I even felt vaguely sorry for myself until I had a chat with an American customer of twenty years standing, who said his library was over 20,000 books and he had had to move it three times. Furthermore the only other person he allowed to pack his books was his wife. (I must admit, she looked as though she could do with a pick-me-up.)
But since then it has been a shock how much I miss Cecil Court, and miss, much more meeting my customers and colleagues (we had a hilarious evening together the night before I closed, when much wine was drunk). One customer, a retired army officer, told me that after he retired he dreamed vividly about army life, which he had never done during all his years of service. It’s true that you take people at work for granted, don’t notice that you see them more often than your friends and, over the years, develop real affection and respect for them. You don’t notice them until they’re not there. So all of you, please, please, contact me at paul@hiltonbooks.co.uk.