If I thought a love affair would give me six months of intense pleasure but that this woman I had a real affinity for would not be in my life ten years from now, I would walk around the love affair. . . . I would go for the long-term friendship.
Beautifully written. I had the pleasure of meeting McMurtry at Booked Up in the 90s. He had recently purchased the entire stock of a closing independent bookstore-in Fort Worth I believe. I found him in the large room just past the small warm room where you paid for your selections. It was a terribly cold day and the large room was poorly heated-if heated at all-and he was standing before a table, pencil in hand, taking out a book at a time which he inspected and priced with the pencil before placing it in a stack on the table. He wore cowboy boots, blue jeans, a nice wool coat and a scarf. I was shocked to see my hero standing before me. I didn’t know what to do or say. I was aware that he wasn’t especially thrilled with the adoration of his readers. Luckily, he paused a second and looked up from the book he was pricing to say, “Hello.” I think I replied, “Hello” and he returned his attention to what was truly important thing in the room--the books. I followed his example and went in search of a treasure to take home. By most people’s standards it wasn’t a very exciting event but for a bibliophile who valued McMurtry’s genius it was perfect-much like your essay.
You tell a wonderful story. No doubt there are thousands of stories just like yours and mine, of folks encountering Larry in Booked Up either reading a book or pricing them. What I didn't include in my piece was after speaking with Larry (and getting my photograph with him), while browsing the stacks I ran into him and we spoke for a few more minutes. He was looking for another book to read.
Thank you for an article on 1 of my favourite authors. 🤠
You're welcome. I'm glad you enjoyed the article.
Beautifully written. I had the pleasure of meeting McMurtry at Booked Up in the 90s. He had recently purchased the entire stock of a closing independent bookstore-in Fort Worth I believe. I found him in the large room just past the small warm room where you paid for your selections. It was a terribly cold day and the large room was poorly heated-if heated at all-and he was standing before a table, pencil in hand, taking out a book at a time which he inspected and priced with the pencil before placing it in a stack on the table. He wore cowboy boots, blue jeans, a nice wool coat and a scarf. I was shocked to see my hero standing before me. I didn’t know what to do or say. I was aware that he wasn’t especially thrilled with the adoration of his readers. Luckily, he paused a second and looked up from the book he was pricing to say, “Hello.” I think I replied, “Hello” and he returned his attention to what was truly important thing in the room--the books. I followed his example and went in search of a treasure to take home. By most people’s standards it wasn’t a very exciting event but for a bibliophile who valued McMurtry’s genius it was perfect-much like your essay.
Thank you, Michael.
You tell a wonderful story. No doubt there are thousands of stories just like yours and mine, of folks encountering Larry in Booked Up either reading a book or pricing them. What I didn't include in my piece was after speaking with Larry (and getting my photograph with him), while browsing the stacks I ran into him and we spoke for a few more minutes. He was looking for another book to read.