Detering Book Gallery in Houston celebrates the beauty of the printed page with a love that goes beyond just selling books. Walking through the narrow hallways into the labyrinth of rooms lined with bookshelves from floor to ceiling is like entering a lost mine with Indiana Jones.
“I’m not sure how many rooms we have,” says Jeffery Scoggins, the store’s general manager. “We have lots of nooks and crannies. Every passageway and closet is crammed with books.” Opened in 1975 by Herman Detering, the store expanded to the house next door in the mid-1980s. The separate buildings are noticeable from the outside, but inside the rows of books lead to more rows of books in an almost seamless fashion.
Visiting the store in the Southhampton Place section of town north of Rice University has the feel of visiting a friend’s library. Soft music fills the air as the bright sunlight pours in through the windows. Comfortable chairs are strategically placed to allow shoppers to sample the wares before they buy.
The store specializes in the general literary humanities, Scoggins says. That means they carry books on just about anything. “We don’t really specialize,” she says with a laugh, unless stocking good-quality used books with an eye for rare, out-of-print, and fine editions is a specialty.
Upstairs they have a collection of beautiful, rare books that often run in the thousands of dollars for leather-bound books, first editions, and rare editions signed by the author. That is not to say that the prices at the Detering Book Gallery are out of reach of the common man and woman.
The general collection downstairs can be equally endowed with unique volumes as the upstairs upscale depository. For the persistent miner there are old books in like-new condition except for a slightly faded dust cover or the yellowing of the pages. Many titles are rare to the used book market and yet affordably priced. “We’re not single-minded in our focus,” Scoggins says. “We have a lot broader base than many fine booksellers.”
Scoggins says, “Not hardly a day goes by that someone doesn’t come in with a box of books to sell.” The store often buys entire collections, sometimes from ordinary book lovers and sometimes from the estates of wealthy bibliophiles. “People think that Houston is not a great place to find rare books, but it is,” she says. The estate of a woman who lived a few blocks away sold the store a complete set of first editions by Thomas Harding. When Cameron Iron Works founder Hebert Allen died, the collection he had amassed over 30 years was purchased by the store for six figures.
Often even small collections can have hidden jewels, Scoggins says. If the reader tends to buy books when they first hit the bookstores, then there can be valuable volumes mixed in with the popular publications. For instance, early works by authors like Larry McMurtry can now fetch sizable sums. “Many people don’t know what they’re sitting on,” she says. “It might be an early edition of an important writer or an important work.”
Of course, there are people who specialize in finding these rare needles in haystacks of garage sales and junk shops. Scoggins deals with several book scouts, folks who spend their weekends, holidays, and vacations looking for rare editions at even rarer low prices. “Some of them are even brave enough to try to make a living doing it full time,” she says, “but most don’t give up their day jobs.”
After 25 years of bookselling experience, the store has gained a reputation that attracts national and international customers. There are always the buyers who let the big one get away. “They always talk about the book they didn’t get,” she says. Once there was a couple in the store looking at a rare James Joyce book. They couldn’t decide and wanted to think about it over lunch. Scoggins offered to put a hold on the book, but they didn’t want her to do that. When they returned that afternoon to buy the book it was already sold. “One thing about used bookselling,” Scoggins says, “the demand is greater than the supply.”
The friendly folks at Detering Book Gallery are willing to help shoppers find a special book or just let them browse to their heart’s content. The store is at 2311 Bissonnet, east of Kirby Drive and near the corner of Greenbrier Street, south of U.S. 59. For information call, 713/526-6974. Hours of operation are 10am to 6pm daily.
The store does not have a Web site of its own, but is listed with Abebooks.com. If there is a book you’re looking for and they have it, then it will show up on the search. But there is no substitute for searching the hundreds of bookshelves for yourself.
Coming up this weekend …
Old Settler’s Music Festival at the Stone Mountain Event Center west of Dripping Springs fills three stages with the likes of Charlie Daniels, John Hartford, and local favorite Peter Rowan. Music begins at 4pm on Friday, noon on Saturday, and 8:30am on Sunday, April 6-8. For a full lineup call 346-1629 or go to www.bluegrassfestival.com.
Music and Fiddle Fest in New Braunfels’ Wursthalle offers nonstop music, arts and crafts, and Cajun and German cuisines, April 6-8. 830/997-8515.
Red Poppy Festival in Georgetown shows off why the town is known as “the poppy capital of Texas,” with plenty of entertainment and food on the courthouse square, April 7-8. 512/930-3545.
Coming up …
Easter Fires Pageant in Fredericksburg started when a pioneer mother told her children that the Indian fires in the hills around the settlement was the Easter bunny boiling eggs for the children. A cast of hundreds of locals presents a blend of community history, Easter fable, and religious facets of the season in a unique production, April 14. 830/997-6523 or www.fredericksburg-texas.com.
An Evening at the Vineyard, sponsored by Texas Hills Vineyard outside of Johnson City, features gourmet dinners accented by locally produced wines and entertainment, April 28, May 12, and June 16. Reservations required. 830/868-2321.
This article appears in April 6 • 2001.
