“It was more than I could possibly need, and it was getting out of hand,” he said.
These days, he comes into his two stores on alternate days and does most of the buying for both.
Feldstein cited the Bible as his favorite book, also saying he enjoys mystical and Kabbalistic commentaries. He also favors books on philosophy, math and science.
But he is willing to yield somewhat to his readers’ tastes. He buys many Greek and Latin classics, which he says have done surprisingly well in sales so far in the Square.
He says he will even buy old Ernest Hemingway editions—which he says always sell well—even if the author is not one of his favorites. But he refuses to purchase any science fiction or mystery stories.
He said he still comes home with three or four books every night.
“I can’t keep up,” he said. “I wish I could live 10,000 years, so I could read all this stuff—and that would only be a start.”
—Staff writer Eugenia B. Schraa can be reached at schraa@fas.harvard.edu.