July 19, 2002

Breaktime

Paul Takushi: Bound to the campus book business

By Ellen Chrismer

Bookstore buyer Paul Takushi expresses his creative side through drumming for two local bands and by writing a quirky newsletter about the store’s events and offerings. Debbie Aldridge/Mediaworks

When Paul Takushi began working in the UC Davis Bookstore as a student assistant in the early 1980s he never thought it would lead to a longtime career in the book business.

"As a student it was more like I applied and I got the job," he said. "They didn’t give us much responsibility."

But he made the most of that four-year post in the store accounting office. In 1988, after graduation and a short stint in the campus accounting office, he was hired as a textbook buyer.

"I told them, ‘I have no retail experience, but you know me, and you know I’ll work hard,’" said Takushi, an avid reader on topics from biography to forensic entomology.

Later he moved to buying trade – or general books – for the store. Takushi enjoyed even more working as a buyer in that section, full of works from small and university presses.

"We like to call it ‘the books that people like to buy,’" he said.

Takushi sells the bookstore’s offerings through a quirky e-mail newsletter he founded in the early days of electronic communication. Now, almost 200 people subscribe to the letter, which can requested through a bookstore Web page, ucdavisbookstore.booksense.com.

"It’s really fun. I have a good time," Takushi said. "I can put in jokes and be flip and sarcastic."

A work of his own is also sold in the store, though it’s not a book. Takushi is an avid drummer for the two Davis-area bands, the lounge-oriented Lookyloos and the more hard-driving Mummy Dogs – who recently released a self-titled CD. It’s available in the store for $14.95.

Takushi calls music his "main No. 1 hobby."

"I really love to perform," he said. "It really keeps me sane."

Takushi, a Hawaii native, lives in Davis, another place he was sure he’d leave soon after college.

"After a while I realized how much Davis has to offer," he said. "Part of it had to do with having a job on campus. It’s the best gig in town."

What’s your favorite part of your job?

Matching the right book with the right person. When they give you a topic, you are able to select something and they really like it, it’s very satisfying.

What’s the worst part of your job?

When a professor comes in and says, "Where’s my book?" There’s usually a good reason why it’s not on the shelf. There might have been 10 copies, and we sold out. Or it might be that your book is over $100, and it’s on an obscure topic. A lot of people don’t understand that we’re not the library.

What’s your favorite place on campus?

The Coffeehouse. The food is good and cheap and healthy.

What Coffeehouse dish do you like the most?

I think it’s called Hungarian goulash or Hungarian beef. It just tastes good.

Who is your biggest musical influence?

Steve Gadd. He’s a studio drummer who’s worked half with jazz groups and half with pop groups. He was the drummer on Steely Dan’s Asia.

You are also an avid A’s fan. Who is your favorite player?

Either (Miguel) Tejada or (Eric) Chavez. Chavez – I like his attitude. Tejada makes the most unreal plays at shortstop.

What are you reading now?

I’m always on three or four books, which is bad. One is called Toothpicks and Logos, which is about design in our lives and the design process. Also, The Real McCoy. It’s a fictionalized account of the real-life guy that the expression comes from. And the book we are all supposed to be reading, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. I want to organize some reading groups here in the fall.

What do you see yourself doing in 10 years?

This same job. I’m going to retire in 15 years; that’s the goal. •