How long have you worked at Lemuria?
I have worked at Lemuria since June 2017, so 10 months!

What do you do at Lemuria?
I’m the person at the front desk who, according to my coworkers, always has fun with my customers! I’m always up for a good book chat, recommendation, or laughing at my own mistakes. I’m also in charge of the cooking, gardening, bar, and health sections. There are so many books in those areas of the store, but I love going through them and finding new favorites to recommend.

trianne

Talk to us what you’re reading right now.
I just finished Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton, a fantastic thriller which comes out in June. I’m also finally reading The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne, which I can hardly put down!

What’s currently on your bedside table (book purgatory)?
I picked up The Book of Disquiet by Fernando Pessoa a year and a half ago in Portugal, planning to read it after I graduated. Hasn’t happened yet.

How many books do you usually read at a time?
I have always been the type of person who reads one book at a time. Then I started working at Lemuria. So currently, I’m reading four.

I know it’s difficult, but give us your current top five books.
How about my top five books since working at Lemuria?

Favorite authors?
Mark Doty, Gail Carson Levine, Jeffery Eugenides, Shannon Hale, Kay Ryan.

Any particular genre that you’re especially in love with?
Poetry. And everything else.

What did you do before you worked at Lemuria?
I attended Belhaven University, studying Creative Writing and English.

If you could share lasagna with any author, dead or alive, who would it be? What would you ask them?
Jeffery Eugenides. It would be amazing to talk about life and literature and the writing process.

Why do you like working at Lemuria?
I love the way everyone here is so passionate not only about books, but about the business. Mississippi culture and independent bookstore culture mix so perfectly. There is a genuine desire to help every customer find not just a book, but the right book.

If we could have any living author visit the store and do a reading, who would you want to come?
Mark Doty. I love his poetry, it’s so concise and elegantly shimmery, and it would be fun to hear his own verbal interpretations.

If Lemuria could have ANY pet (mythical or real), what do you think it should be?
A little monkey to climb up the shelves and retrieve books.

If you had the ability to teleport, where would you go first?
I would go back to Belfast and visit everyone I met while studying abroad. Then I would go back to California and visit my family. Then I would go to Russia, because I’ve always wanted to go.

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