Why is everyone an asshole today?

[sorcyress]

Dear asshole clerk at Porter Books:

When I come up to the counter and ask "Do you know if this is any good?" and you haven't read the graphic novel in question, the correct answer is, in fact, "I haven't read it."

"That looks too young for me, I like to read books with words." is incorrect.

Dick.

No love
~Sor
MOOP!

((PostScript: I used to think Porter Books was a really awesome bookstore. One of my favourite things about it is that it carried comics. Now I'm thinking I'm a little less willing to spend my money there. After all, there are a damn load of other stores that carry those books without so many words, and the pretty pictures. And they won't look down on me when I want to give them my money.))

Comments

[harena.livejournal.com]

Damn Straight. Pretty Pictures are shiny!

*sets stupid clerk on fire*

[thorog.livejournal.com]

Uh, yeah. That's enough to stop me shopping there. Tbh I'd probably go "OK", leave the comic there and walk out of the store.

Or, yknow, "Then fetch someone who knows shit about books, like your manager."

[blaisepascal]

This. Regardless of the quality of the book, the behavior was unprofessional and the manager should know about the quality of his/her employee.

[blaisepascal]

I am sure I've read a graphic novel which didn't have words, but I'm having a hard time to remember anything specific.

[whimmydiddle.livejournal.com]

Forward this to the store manager.

[thehefner.livejournal.com]

Asshole. My eyes would have been a magnifying glass and he would have been the ant.

[thoroughbass.livejournal.com]

In PSB's defence: i. Despite a sometimes limited selection, they carry graphic novels, including the one you asked about, which suggests that the folks making the decisions care about alternative literatures. Heck, they put SF in the FRONT WINDOW. ii. I appreciate that, even if he doesn't express himself terribly well, the guy had an opinion to share. iii. Everybody acts up once in a while. Not sure you can take his behaviour as company policy. iv. They have a belles-lettres section. v. They have good readings & are not part of a huge national conglomerate. vi. Aztec hot chocolate.

That said, the area's kinda crawling with excellent comic book stores.

[kdsorceress.livejournal.com]

Oh man, no, I really like Porter Square Books. It's not typically where I buy comics, but I had a gift card, and I've been craving comics more recently than books.

I'm just...gah. It's about equal parts being pissed that he was being patronizing to me, and that the world at large continues to not think that comics can be for grown-ups. Sure, the ones I picked out are more or less "kids" books (Mouse Guard, which I've heard nothing but good about, and a retelling of Rapunzel.) but giving Sandman, or Fables, or Transmetropolitan to a child?

Yeah. It's apparently one of those topics that makes me ranty!Sor.

~Sor

[malakhgabriel.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'd send this along to the store management too. That's ridiculous behavior.

[ms-hecubus.livejournal.com]

I'm sure that's not the sort of thing the store's manager would appreciate. I would check their website for contact info and let him know what happened. Make sure you include the time & date of your visit. If you know the clerk's name (check your receipt) that would be helpful too.

I'm a book snob too, but when you work retail the number one most important thing is representing the store. If he's so above the job then maybe he shouldn't be working there, you know? (not that your complaint will get him fired or anything)

[marcmagus]

(Unless there's a pattern here...the manager should definitely have the information about how their employee is treating customers.)

[ms-hecubus.livejournal.com]

Of course if there's a pattern he should be fired. I've noticed that a lot of people think if they complain about an employee it means automatic termination and I didn't want Kat to let that discourage her from complaining. It actually takes a lot to get fired, even in retail.

[marcmagus]

Good point. I hadn't noticed that pattern (consciously), but now that you mention it, I see what you're talking about.

I'd expect that, in a vacuum, the most that would happen would be the manager mentioning the complaint to the employee and stating that this wasn't appropriate. I also expect the employee's response would be to sulk and write in his LiveJournal or whatever about the bitch who got him yelled at by his boss for a little off-hand remark about comic books, but that's because my faith in humanity is fairly low right now.

[ms-hecubus.livejournal.com]

Having been a retail manager for many a year in my youth I suspect that scenario is exactly right.

[woozle.livejournal.com]

The next time this happens, a good rejoinder might be "Oh, so you don't like art books?" (You know... large, glossy books featuring full-page renderings of classic works by Monet or Picasso or whoever...) (My favorite art book is one about Roger Dean, who did most of the early 1970s covers for the band Yes. My second favorite is one about the history of the American newspaper comic strip... containing, of course, lots of examples. Album art probably doesn't have snob appeal, but surely "History" does? Not that it matters.)

[joshuazelinsky.livejournal.com]

If that happened with me, I'd be tempted to talk to the store manager. On the other hand, people work in retail have to put up with a lot of crap, so it may have just been a snappish remark after a bad day.

Incidentally, you should take a look at notalwaysright.com which has stories about all sorts of people dealing with all sorts of strange, stupid, incompetent or evil customers.

[l33tminion]

may have just been a snappish remark after a bad day

In my mind, there's a rather large difference between a shopkeeper who is curt or thoughtless and a shopkeeper who directly insults a customer.

[xalolo.livejournal.com]

I would(as others have suggested) tell the manager. If nobody complains, then the manager might not know that the clerk is being an arrogant twit to customers when out of sight.

[l33tminion]

After all, there are a damn load of other stores that carry those books without so many words, and the pretty pictures.

Million Year Picnic, for one. I love that store, thought they part me from my money far too effectively.

[(Anonymous)]

Yes, Dick you are quite right. The response to your question was totally inappropriate and contrary to how we expect customers to be treated in our store. In our training we try to put an emphasis on hospitality. We expect our customers to be treated as if they were a guest in our own home. Being a general bookstore we try to serve customers with a wide variety of interests and tastes and we expect those to be respected by our staff, even when not sometimes shared by them. Your unacceptable experience has already been used as a reminder to our staff of the attitude and behavior we expect from them.

Dale Szczeblowski
General Manager
Porter Square Books

[kdsorceress.livejournal.com]

Woah! I don't know if you'll ever come back and see this comment ((So I'm probably gonna go try and leave an e-mail at your site as well)), but I'm very impressed. Well done, and thank you.

~Sor

[(Anonymous)]

(Not to detract from the manager's effort to go out of his way to apologize, but...) I like funny misinterpretations, and thinking your name was Dick based on the original post is a good one.

-a lurker