ISLAND TIME BOOKSHOP CHANGES HANDS

Kathleen Dixon, left, will soon turn the keys to her store over to new
owner Deb Wayman.

Washington Island, Wisconsin -

When Island Time Books closes on October 15, Kathleen Dixon will retire from the business she started 11 years ago.  The shop's new owner will be Deb Wayman, who was on hand in the closing days of the 2014 season to meet customers and learn about the business in preparation for next year, when she'll reopen the store Memorial Weekend.

Her customers would liken Dixon's personality to that of a speed reader:  rapid, engaging conversation, seldom dropping in velocity, filled with information; a scanning of authors, books, and events; the trending of reader habits and the book industry - all within a short visit.  But, because of her love of what she does, Kathleen's been a great resource, and for those same reasons, her customer base, both regular and the drop-in visitor, has grown over the years.

Retiring after 30 years as an emergency trauma nurse - much of that time as a member of an ambulance crew - Dixon started a new pursuit as the owner of Island Time Books.  For two years it was located on Main Road across from Karly's, and then for the past nine years in its present location, nestled between the Red Cup and the Island Post Office.  As anyone visits with her knows, her mind is rapid-fire, enthusiastically promoting authors, books, her store, and the Island.

She's always loved books.  "We were readers.  My sisters and I used to walk to the libraries," Dixon remembered, noting the many neighborhood branches of the Chicago Public Library in the city where she grew up.

"Day trippers and others are thrilled to see an independent bookstore, with good coffee next door," she said, "great for browsing on rainy days.  They like the Independent Bookstore list that comes out monthly, with its many new recommendations."

Dixon prides herself in the fact she could recommend books to readers who least expected to find such a wide range of titles in so small a shop - on an island, no less.   She would often special-order books requested by visitors who stayed only a week or two, receiving their requests within two days via UPS.  Many loyal customers, she noted, buy books at the close of the season to read during winter.  Physical books, as opposed to e-books, she noted, are still very much a part of the public's reading habits.

Dixon kept current on new titles and authors, in part, by attending the annual Key West Literary Festival, where many of the nation's leading authors would gather each January.  (Key West was her former winter home, but she's now moved to the Naples area.)  At the Key West Festival, Dixon volunteered for several years at their book sales table, in addition to being a registered participant.  She's a member of the Island Literary Festival committee, involved since its inception.

This winter Dixon and Wayman plan to travel to the American Booksellers Conference in Asheville, North Carolina, where Dixon will introduce Wayman to her industry friends and contacts.

Dixon still plans to visit the island in summer.  "I'll be back," she said.

New owner Deb Wayman and husband Bob, an engineer and production manager, own a summer place along the eastern shore of Washington Island, on Wickman Road.  However, their year around home will continue to be York Center, Illinois.  Their two children, Alan, 23, and Shelby, 20, are enrolled in college.  


-  Dick Purinton

First look with Kathleen Dixon.

Washington Island, Wisconsin -

A Wisconsin Commercial Ports Association annual meeting was held here Thursday afternoon and Friday morning, with representatives of many of Wisconsin's ports, governmental agencies and professionals who design and build port structures, including dredging.

The conference ended at noon, Friday, and when I went to the Island Ferry Office I learned that my anticipated book shipment of three pallets had arrived late the previous afternoon.   Our crew had put the books in the steel storage building.   Because one pallet held just four cartons, I placed those boxes on my truck.  On the way home I decided to stop first at Kathleen Dixon's IslandTime bookshop, next to Red Cup Coffee and the Post Office.

There, in front of her store, we opened up one of the boxes.  This was the first time either of us had a chance to see the finished product.  I had expectations and knew what it should look like.  Kathleen had   taken a number of advance orders from customers, but she hadn't seen any of the material, other than my description of its contents.   She hailed Cooper Henkel, who was sitting nearby on the Red Cup porch, to take several photos.

Small book shops are important for the sale of books of regional interest, I've found, and although I've developed a website that will now permit direct sales by credit card, many local readers and island visitors enjoy browsing and picking up books with a local flavor where they can thumb the cover and scan pages.  Right now, for a few days at least, Kathleen's shop will be the only store handling the book.  When I have more time, in the coming week, this book will become be available at other outlets, including mainland book shops.

Next Saturday, September 21, I'll have a signing party at the Ferry Terminal lobby, from 2:30 to 5:00 pm.

I should mention that Kathleen is a valuable member of the Island Literary Festival Committee.   She has been a participant with the Key West Literary Festival for many years, and she knows how such an event can be successfully run.  Her knowledge of writers - local, statewide and national - is tremendous.  Naturally, I'm pleased that she mentions my name to her customers.  Many people I've met aboard the Karfi this past summer received book information from Kathleen, along with her recommendation.

So, after several hours Friday spent fulfilling my own backlogged list of customer orders, I have, more or less, two pallets of about 1400 books remaining to be sold.  I expect this to be a long-term process, over several years, maybe.  But we're off to a great start, and I'm looking forward to receiving reader book orders and comments.

  -  Dick Purinton         [For book and order information go to:    www.RichardPurinton.com]