I know for a fact I am not alone in being shocked by the news of David Thompson’s death. I feel like I’ve been punched and deflated.
David was truly one of the good guys. I don’t know of a single person who had contact with him and didn’t love him. He was an awesome book seller, he was a great book publisher and a champion of the genre of mystery.
But what David was more than anything else was a friend, to everyone who met him. For me he was a great straight man who always laughed at my jokes. He would calm me down if I was irritated or upset and he would make me laugh on a regular basis. David was also on of the most enthusiastic people I ever met and that is no exaggeration. Being in his vicinity was like being on the edge of a tornado and you just got sucked right up into whatever it was that was exciting him. He inspired me to be better than I am, kinder and more open minded. Knowing David honestly made me a better person.
Seeing David with McKenna was to believe in true love. The look on his face when he was with her made me know that there is truly good in this world.
As I type this i am feeling a lot of emotions, I am mad that he was taken from us, I am sad that my friend is gone and I am confused about why. The worst thing is I don’t know what to do about filling the hole that is now in my heart.
I wish I could do something for his family to make this better, but there isn’t anything. All I can do is try to be half the person David was and and to keep looking for the good in all things.
I remember when Dave contacted me to do a signing at the store. It was the first time and I'll always thank him for that. I, too, feel that the world just got emptier and my heart aches for McKenna. I, too, know what true love is and I sensed that between her and Dave. God keep him and her safe.
I never met David face-to-face, but over the last year, anytime I e-mailed him with one stupid request or another (Usually for help in contacting an author to set up an interview or to see if gallies were available of new BFP titles.) we'd end up e-mailing back and forth for days discussing books and the authors we enjoyed reading. David lived the type of life in the crime community that I aspire to achieve. He served as an example and as a mentor. I'm shocked andI'm sad
Crying again. I've gotta get off this darn internet.
David was a true gent. Smart, classy and damn friendly.
So much passion and energy for not just the world of mystery, but life in general.
David didn't care if you were a famous author or just some guy. He treated us all the same. To meet him was to be his friend.
I spent part of today at a reading by Caryl Ferey in New York, which meant I was among people interested in South African crime fiction. And that means that I spent a good part of the day talking about "Wake Up Dead" by Roger Smith. One woman even bought it on my say-so, and I'm happy because it may be the best crime novel I've read this year.
Why do I mention this? Because last year I visited Murder By the Book. I bought a bunch of stuff, and then David put an ARC of "Wake Up Dead" in my hands and said, "You might like this."
What a wonderful human being and ambassador for authors and independent booksellers he was. I didn't know him nearly as well as you did, but man, this is hard to take.
It's been three days since I heard, and I'm still having a hard time believing that David is gone. I have a book signing at MBTB on November 13th, and I know I'll be glancing up at the counter, looking for him. I'm so glad that he found McKenna, just wishing their time together could have been many decades longer. David's life has been cut tragically short, but his legacy is all the love and friendship he leaves behind. RIP David.
Wonderfully generous to a new writer. And a lover of gulf coast oysters. I wish I knew him better.