Wyatt, what's your role here at Maria's?

I’m a Bookseller––but also a booktalker and a bookthinker

How long have you been in that role?

Since April 2023!

Favorite thing about your role here:

The variety of conversations I have with customers and fellow employees, from lighthearted discussions on food to solving society's most pressing issues. 

What are you reading right now: The Crossing by Cormac McCarthy, Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones, American Gods by Neil Gaiman, and Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez. 

Last book you read: Killswitch by Adam Jentleson

Best drink to sip while reading: A cappuccino, draught ale, or an ice-cold Topo Chico

Favorite format for consuming books: Paperback, ideally small and malleable enough to fit inside my coat pocket so I can take it anywhere.

Ideal place to read: Sitting outside a cafe on a quiet street, on a porch, waiting at an airport terminal, or any place where I comfortably sit and people-watch.

Do you read alone? With Company? I enjoy both reading alone and amidst a hum of social interaction at any local business. That being said, I prefer reading among strangers. The more people I know, the less focused I will be. 

What do you eat when you read? Pizza, salt & vinegar chips, bananas, pesto pasta, ice cream

Best book recommendation you’ve received: The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi

What book do you think everyone should read: Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner. Written more than thirty years ago, this book accurately predicted our current water crisis––and warned of the severe issues yet to arise. This is the book for understanding the tragic nature of development in the American Southwest. 

What’s your go-to genre? Current events, political science, horror, sociology, and anything written by Jennifer Egan or Haruki Murakami. 

Quick! Recommend a book! Exhalation by Ted Chiang. This collection of sci-fi short stories explores our burgeoning relationships with virtual reality and AI, as well as the classic debates on existence and free will. Chiang uses a humanistic and emotional approach to discuss these ideas, making the existential conversations more comfortable than your typical sci-fi. 

What meme best describes you?