TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Bound By Books

ADVERTISEMENT

By GEOFF FOX

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 28, 2008

DADE CITY - Some business owners have customers.

Jo Kassabaum has friends who happen to spend money at her store, The Book Shack.

On a steamy weekday morning, Shirley Carson came in through the store's back entrance, a bag full of books in her hand.

"We moved here in 1979, and I haven't left her alone since," Carson said. "I've cried on her shoulder, and she's cried on mine."

Through the years, the friends said they have shared their families' joyful news and bonded during difficult times.

A Wisconsin native, Kassabaum has operated the downtown Dade City institution for 29 years. Before that, she was a stay-at-home mom and sometimes worked part time at businesses owned by her husband, Tom.

"My sister-in-law had a book store in Waukesha, Wis. We were talking one evening, and she said she had some extra books," Kassabaum said. "She said, 'If you have a place to open a store, I'll send them to you if you pay the shipping.'

"She sent me 9,000 books. She hadn't discovered sidewalk sales yet."

Since then, The Book Shack's inventory has multiplied more than 10 times.

The merchandise is a mix of literary genres and titles - from "Passage to Natchez," a western by Cameron Judd, to "Shrink Your Female Fat Zones" by Denise Austin to "I Never Played the Game" by Howard Cosell.

The store also features works by local authors such as William Dennis, Mark "Tiger" Edmonds, R.W. Lowrie, Caroline D. Marlette and Carol Overstreet.

In Kassabaum, Edmonds, a recently retired English professor from Saint Leo University, finds an almost "Rainman"-like ability to recall what her regular customers have read.

"You can bring a stack of books to the counter, and she'll go through them, one by one," he said. "She'll say, 'You've already read this one ... and this one.' She'll also tell you if there's one that you won't like."

The store also has paintings by Joe Geiger and other local artists, along with various postings that tell you about the store's character. On one bookshelf, there's a "B.C." comic in which a character says, "Life is a seventy-five cent paperback." A nearby poster says: "Solve mysteries - Read."

When Kassabaum opened in 1979, she said romance novels were her most popular titles because the majority of her customers were women.

"As others found me, it changed," she said. "Right now, mysteries are the biggest sellers. Even the romance writers have gone to writing suspense. But then, westerns are always popular and science fiction.

"The horror genre has become less popular because there aren't as many writers. There's Stephen King and Dean Koontz, and maybe three or four others who are prolific, but the rest have kind of faded away."

Kassabaum's own favorite authors include Madeleine Brent (a pseudonym for British author Peter O'Donnell), mystery novelist Harlan Coben, Lee Child, a writer of thrillers, and David Baldacci, the best-selling American writer.

Her 1,000-square-foot location at 14407 Seventh St. is about seven blocks north of the Seventh Street shop she ran for about 20 years.

On a recent weekday, she grabbed a calculator from near the cash register to figure out how long she and Tom have been married.

"Forty-seven years," she said, finally.

The couple raised three sons: Tim, who died in April 2007; Rob and Mike. The also have four grandchildren.

Standing at the register, she said she isn't likely ever to retire.

She loves the store and the customers she knows as friends.

Through the years, she said she has learned that people, like books, cannot be judged by outward appearances.

"Some little old ladies will come in looking for true crime," she said. "And, some men are looking for something more romantic."

THE BOOK SHACK

The store is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday. For information, call (352) 567-5001.

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 779-4613 or gfox@tampatrib.com. Keyword: Everyday People, to watch a video of Kassabaum in her store

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT