Meet the bookseller
Meet the bookseller with Gabrielle Williams
Gabrielle Williams has worked at Readings for the past six years where she juggles dual roles as a bookseller at Malvern shop, and as the Grants Officer for the Readings Foundation. She is also an award-winning author of young adult novels, most recently including the funny and heartfelt My Life as a Hashtag. Here, she shares some of her favourite recent reads and some advice on how customers can support the work of the Readings Foundation.
What is your…
Meet the music specialist with Dave Clarke
Dave Clarke is our Music & DVD Manager. Here, he shares some of his favourite musicians and most memorable moments from working at Readings over the past 16 years.
Why did you decide to work in music? And how did you end up at Readings?
I did a work experience week at my local store – Pet Sounds in Malvern (which much later became Readings Malvern) – back in August of 1984. Dave, the owner, liked me and offered me…
Meet the bookseller with Judi Mitchell
Judi Mitchell has worked at Readings for close to 20 years. At the moment, she juggles four different roles: Senior Customer Service Officer, Staff Trainer, Digital Content Assistant and the Editorial Assistant for the Readings Monthly. Phew! Here, she tells us her favourite thing about working at a bookshop, and what books are next on her TBR pile.
Why did you decide to work in books?
I’m not sure whether I decided to work in books or whether books…
Meet the bookseller with Tom Hoskins
Tom Hoskins has worked at Readings for 15 years, and been manager of our shop at the State Library Victoria since 2010. Tom is also involved with making the Readings Podcast, and is the manager of the Melbourne Writers Festival Bookshop at Federation Square – please come visit him at this year’s festival!
Here, we chat with him about how bookshops serve communities, and the thrill he gets from seeing a customer pick up an unusual book he’s…
Meet the bookseller with Angela Crocombe
Angela Crocombe has worked at Readings for more than seven years, and is now the manager of our Kids shop. We chat with her about the bookselling trends she’s noticed in recent years, and her favourite part of a working day.
Why did you decide to work in books?
Books have always been my passion. Despite this, I never really believed it was possible to work with them every day. But after doing degrees in economics and politics (which were…
Meet the bookseller with Bernard Vella
Bernard Vella has worked at Readings for close to 15 years, and managed our Malvern shop for six of those years. We chat with him about the singular pleasures of physical books, and what he likes to read – everything from the classics to books about dinosaurs.
What is your favourite part of your job?
That’s easy – looking after our customers. I’d like to think that each of the Readings shops serves a community. It’s an immensely satisfying thing…
Meet the bookseller with Kara McQueen
Kara McQueen recently stepped into the role of shop manager at Readings Doncaster. Here, she shares the authors she’d invite to a dinner party, and explains why customer queries make her nervous.
Why did you decide to work in books?
I don’t think I ever consciously decided to work in books – books chose me. I’ve always been an avid reader and one of my very first jobs was bookselling. When I moved abroad after high school, I was lucky…
Meet the bookseller with Sharon Peterson
After working as the assistant manager at Readings Carlton for almost 10 years, Sharon Peterson has recently moved into the role of shop manager at Readings St Kilda. We chat with her about bookshop proposals, her love of the classics, and what exciting reads she has on her TBR pile.
Why did you decide to work in books?
I can’t say that I actually ‘decided’ to work in books (I vaguely remember wanting to be a teacher) but my first…
Meet the bookseller with Joe Rubbo
Joe Rubbo has worked on and off at Readings over the past 13 years, and is the son of our managing director, Mark Rubbo. The former manager at Readings Doncaster, he now manages our Carlton shop. Here, we chat with Joe about his favourite recent reads, and what happens in bookshops between 9pm and 11pm.
Why did you decide to work in books?
I started out at the Hawthorn shop, a part-time job while studying Arts. I always thought that…
Meet the bookseller with Tara Kaye Judah
We chat with Tara Kaye Judah about her fondness for feminist film theory and capitalist critique, and why she loves the cover of David Vann’s Goat Mountain.
Why do you work in books?
If I were to build a fort with walls of knowledge, the final result would be a bookstore. I want to live peacefully in a fort of knowledge. At Readings, the fort is also friendly.
What book would you happily spend a weekend indoors with?
Anything…
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