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Tomorrow was the carnival, a full day being surrounded by a mass of people with only a few she knew in passing. Yippy. Jessie replayed the conversation with her mother while she put the bookstore to rights. There were astronomy books in with gardening, comics in with art books… that one gave her a pause since they were technically art books but she sighed and added them to the stack of books in her arms before moving on her way. After twisting the conversation front way and back way and still unable to figure out how she got roped into going Jessie let it go and focused on the shop. She wanted it set to rights and all ready for Jackson tomorrow so she could at least try to enjoy the carnival.

With a smile that got brighter the longer she worked with the books Jessie quickly re-shelved her collected books before going back to straighten all the knickknacks. She watered the plants that were in the gardening area, set the stars hanging from the ceiling above astronomy swinging as she dusted, cleaned the face prints from the windows in the art section… the mustaches on them always attracted the inevitable funny faces, and she picked up the scattered toys in the children section. She content with her colorful and playful store… who needs to go to a carnival when you work in a store as whimsical as hers?

Jessie was puttering around in the sports section when she heard someone call out. She put the putter back on the top of the shelf where it belonged and headed back towards the main part. She blessed her father for his insite when she could see the main door while still winding through the stacks. Jessie remembered the massive demo when her father took out most walls, leaving behind a few half walls and support pilers. The half walls turned into short bookcases while the now wide open Victorian was filled with bookcases and small reading nooks.

She spotted the young man as she emerged from the pet's section. "Hello. Can I help you?" Jessie relished the challenge of finding the books others were looking for, suggesting others they might want to read, and the rare chance she got to have a deep conversation about authors and books in general. She idly wondered what this young man would be looking for... sports? animals? plants? fiction? There were many possibilities.

Jessies eyes sparkled with the challenge. She normally gets requests for things like dog books or books by a certain author. Rarely did she get something this detailed and yet open ended. The question was did she have any...

"I like a guy who knows what he is talking about." Jessie laughed an asked, "So are we looking for those two specifically or is it ok if we find books that have polyptychs in general? We do have general medieval art and the Renaissance. As well as books about the famous artists like Da Vinci, Botticelli, and Raphael." Jessie led the way to the art section, glad that she had already straightened the area up. The giant paintbrush proclaimed the section all about art but it was all the little things on the bookcases that said it was about the variety of art. Cameras, a ballerina, Glass sculptures, stone busts of artists, pallets and mini paintings. Other then the kid's section this was probably one of the most colorful sections. Jessie glanced over at the mustaches on the windows and noticed that she missed some finger prints. Got to remember to clean that again

"Both Lorenzetti brothers or just one of them. I don't think we have anything more then a book or two that would mention them both but not likely the brother's individual. As for Giotto, he is likely in a book that mentions the Italian Renaissance." Jessie remembered getting the two Lorenzetti brother's mixed up when she was taking a art history class at DCU and Giotto was mentioned when they were discussing the difference between the Italian renaissance and the European renaissance. Jessie began to search through the shelves.

"Hum? Labels?" Jessie looked up and realized he meant the section markers. "Well technically we do," Jessie pointed to the small white sign that said 'ART' that sat at the end of the case, "But I have found that most people don't actually read the signs and besides all the," unsure what to call them she just gestured, "makes the place amusing and special."

“An art history class and a drawing 101 class for the credits. I enjoyed the drawing class but the history class was a bit dull, the general class joke was the teacher was old enough to be there.” Jessie shrugged. The memories of her time in DCU were filled with classes, books, and papers. That history class was more or less her with her nose in the book learning more from the written word then the drone of the ancient teacher but she did truly enjoy the drawing class… not enough to change her major but enough to keep and use an extensive art book collection of her own.

“Of course, besides if I don’t have it right now I’ll find it and get it for you. I know we should at least have one or two basic art period books…. Ah Ha!” With a smile of triumph Jessie pulled out two large books. “Hum? Time? Oh it’s no big deal, I should hear if the bell goes off.” She handed the books to young man, “Here is Art History: Medieval art by Marilyn Stokstad and Michael Watt Cothren. And here is Medieval art by Marilyn Stokstad. I don’t know if they are exactly what you are looking for but they are a start.”

Jessie shrugged; she couldn’t say much about the full information imparted by the class since art was not her true passion. As for the class itself, “I don’t know. I would like to think it was mainly the teacher’s droning voice that was the issue. Something a bit more engaging would have made it better but it’s been a few years since then so I don’t know how well students now would handle a class like that.” Jessie nodded. She understood what the young man meant but for her it was seen through the lens of literature, because while she loved fiction she learned to enjoy histories, biographies, and other non-fiction work by taking the various English classes required for a English degree. “Ahh, but retro is said to have come back in style.” Or that’s what one of those fashion magazines she stocked said.

“I have a BA in English but I did enjoy taking the art classes for the credits.” Jessie also remembered the other various classes she took for the gen. ed. Requirements; the tai-chi class, the physics class, the pottery class, and most memorable… the women’s studies class….. that teacher was bat-s**t crazy. “I found that college gave me a chance to learn so much more than just my major what with all the general education requirements that needed to be filled and the random credits that had to be taken.” It actually occurred to Jessie that with more help in the store she could go back and take classes that were just for pleasure… like kick-boxing or fencing when one factors in her new night time activities.

“That might be so, but you still pick up interesting things.” Jessie shrugged. After all she learned about polyptychs in an elective class. “I think that’s why most colleges require you to take so many electives… so you can experience things that are outside of your major. Tomas Huxley was the one who said, ‘Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.’”

“That’s great and if it turns out they aren’t what you’re looking for bring them back and we shall look again.” Jessie nodded and led the way back to the front door. She was glad that this young man came in with a challenge since it helped take her mind off of her ‘night’ life. For a few moments at least she was fully engaged in the here and now, not fixating on the carnival or the future. This… This is why she loved books.

Jessie smiled, pleased that her store had another happy customer. She loved being able to help others find just the right story to answer the questions or tickle their fancy. She didn’t know just how well her store was being known in the world of DCU but hearing that this young man came due to a fellow student’s recommendation made pride bloom in her chest. She worked damn hard for this store, and while it was a labor of love, she still liked to know that her parent’s trust was not misplaced when they turned the store over to her. “We are almost always open and we even have an informal book club on Mondays if you ever want to stop by.” The book club was more a time to meet like minded individuals then a discussion on a book they agreed to read that week.

“Not particularly.” Jessie made a face; she owned a large collection of old books but found that they weren’t for the normal everyday sale. “We have one or two at any given time but if you ever have a particular book in mind I will try to find it for you.” It was a service she offered everyone because she loved the challenge of finding just the right book.