Comments on: Karl Pohrt: A Farewell

By: Jeremy Peters

Jeremy Peters — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 16:20:12 +0000

Dave, thank you for this beautiful write up about Karl. I never had the chance to meet him, but his presence changed the lives of many of my friends who worked for him, and I fondly remember shopping in his store. He and Shaman will be missed deeply.

By: Susan Lackey

Susan Lackey — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 12:31:27 +0000

Karl changed the way I looked at independent businesses when he told me, during the heyday of the original dot.com boom, that he saw ensuring the success of those small, local companies here and elsewhere as the social movement of this era. And then, he went looking for ways for Shaman Drum and others to blend their unique position in the community with the new opportunities provided by the Internet.

That ability to embrace change as a way of maintaining the things that were important about his community marked Karl as the kind of quietly visionary leader we need far more of. He will be missed.

By: anna ercoli schnitzer

anna ercoli schnitzer — Tue, 16 Jul 2013 08:08:36 +0000

I did not personally know Karl, only admired him from afar, but to me The Shaman Drum was the epitome of what a bookstore should and could be. It was beautiful both in style and content. I remember reading James Hynes”s “Publish and Perish; Three Tales of Tenure and Terror,” a wicked, 3-novella academic satire in which that store was so beautifully described.

By: Rod Johnson

Rod Johnson — Tue, 16 Jul 2013 01:39:51 +0000

When Karl first opened the store, I came by. I had been a regular customer of Paideia, its predecessor, whose owner was a somewhat difficult person. So I came in to meet this new guy and we became friends. I was somewhat at loose ends, thinking about dropping out of grad school, and Karl offered me a job. I was employee number 2 (Anna Hammond was #1). I worked there for a couple years, but left before the big expansion and move downstairs. It came at the right time in my life–I got to have long interesting conversations with patrons, read a lot of great stuff, and generally started to feel like I belonged in the academic community. I’ve always loved Karl for seeing I needed that job and extending his hand.

I saw him only sporadically the last few years since the store closed and didn’t know he was sick. So his death has been a real shock. But it’s been good hearing all the tributes, nationally as well as locally. Shaman Drum was a thing the likes of which we’re never going to see again, and we were lucky to have it in our town.

By: David Crumm

David Crumm — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 15:54:48 +0000

Thank you, Dave, and Ann Arbor Chronicle!
Karl was a wise and generous friend to so many people, certainly me included. Over the decades, I shared occasional coffees or conversations at Shaman Drum. He loved the voices that come to us through books and understood that sharing such wisdom across centuries and continents was a vital part of encouraging healthy communities. The list of his many kindnesses on behalf of colleagues would fill pages.
So sad to hear we’ve lost him. Thanks for posting this column and tribute.

By: Sally Mitani

Sally Mitani — Sat, 13 Jul 2013 18:32:14 +0000

In 1981, Dan Morris and I started The Alternative Review of Literature and Politics. Karl had just started Shaman Drum. We had no clue what we were doing, but Karl bought a large ad, and continued to advertise and have receptions for us until we closed, um, about 5 months later. It was a good ride! Thank you Karl.

By: Domenica Trevor

Domenica Trevor — Sat, 13 Jul 2013 11:29:33 +0000

Thanks for this, Dave. And thank you, Karl, above all, for Shaman Drum. We loved it so.