Prime tickets for Bush visit sold out in Naperville
Former President George W. Bush apparently knows how to sell books.
The announcement Tuesday that the 43rd president will appear Dec. 1 at Anderson's Bookshop in downtown Naperville sparked a run on his new work, "41: A Portrait of My Father," Anderson's spokeswoman Candace Purdom said.
All tickets that guarantee a chance to meet the former president were sold out in a single day, she said, and the store remained busy Wednesday selling copies of "41" for customers to join a waiting list to meet the author if time allows.
Purdom said all six of the store's phone lines and its website were clogged with orders until it stopped accepting them online around midday Wednesday. Anyone who wants to buy a copy of the book and possibly meet Bush now must come into the store at 123 W. Jefferson Ave.
"It's just been crazy," Purdom said Wednesday. "I expect we'll sell out, possibly today."
Before his appearance, Bush will sign 1,200 copies of the book. He'll hand them out beginning at 2 p.m. to fans who will have waited more than an hour to go through security and meet the former president.
Bush will not personalize books or sign other memorabilia.
Customers will enter the signing line early according to a color-coded system of wristbands. Those with orange wristbands are asked to arrive at 12:30 p.m. and people with green wristbands are scheduled to arrive at 1 p.m. Customers with pink wristbands - the only option still for sale Wednesday - are not guaranteed to meet the author. Customers are asked to bring their receipt and wristband on Monday, but a coat and keys are the only other items that will be allowed.
Naperville resident Andy Kegebein's parents will be among those with green wristbands lining up at 1 p.m. to see the president they refer to by his middle initial.
"They went to W's inauguration," Kegebein said. "They're big W fans."
This is the first time Bush has spoken at Anderson's, although his wife, Laura, and daughter, Jenna, have appeared there before. Purdom said she believes Anderson's is the first independent bookstore to host an appearance by the former president.
"We're honored that he chose us," Purdom said.
Bush's new book, "41," has been described as an intimate biography that covers the entire scope of President George H.W. Bush's life and career.