Spotlight On Staff: Steve Duesterhaus

By Julia Parmley

As textbook manager for the GW Bookstore, Steve Duesterhaus watches more than 4,500 titles come and go each semester from the Marvin Center. He first came to GW in 1991 as assistant trade book manager, briefly left the University to work at Georgetown University’s bookstore, then returned to the Marvin Center in 1999. He now manages textbook orders from faculty and students, works with book wholesalers and publishers, and organizes returns—all with the aim of getting the textbooks on the shelves before classes start each semester.

Q: What are you reading right now?
A: The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci by Jonathan Spence. It’s about an Italian Jesuit, Matteo Ricci, who traveled to China in 1583 to spread Catholicism and taught Confucian scholars tricks to improve their memory. I got into the textbook business because I love to read, so when I have some time I try to keep reading.

Q: What do you usually have for breakfast?
A: It varies. This morning I went to the McDonald’s drive-through and got a coffee and a McGriddles sandwich, which is bacon, egg, and cheese on pancakes. But usually I pick up something from J Street.

Q: After a long day at work, what do you do to relax?
A: Sleep! My three kids, Emily, Drew, and Maureen, are swimmers so I drive them to a lot of their practices, meets, and other activities. So when I have some down time I love to sleep!

Q: What three bands would you want to hear on your radio?
A: Steely Dan, Chicago, and the Doobie Brothers. I like classic rock or something you can sing along to in the car and no one can hear. I drive my daughter to high school in the morning so she wouldn’t want me to sing, but I like some of the popular music she likes as well.

Q: What are your favorite television shows?
A: Numb3rs, Smallville, and Kyle XY. I like shows that involve some sort of puzzle mystery, and action.

Q: What is your favorite movie?
A: To Kill a Mockingbird. It doesn’t follow the book exactly but it’s one of the few movies that does justice to the book it’s based on. Gregory Peck is incredible in the lead role and the black-and-white aspect adds a realism that makes it perfect as well. My first date with my wife, Theresa, was actually a screening of the movie when we both were undergraduates at the University of Virginia.

Q: Where was your last trip?
A: My family and I traveled to the Outer Banks, N.C., last summer. I started visiting when I was in college and when I took my family there they loved it, so we go every year. The beaches are lovely and it is quieter and less commercial than other places.

Q: What is your favorite food?
A: My favorite food would be the crab cakes served at Howard’s Pub on Ocracoke Island in the Outer Banks.

Q: Who do you admire most?
A: My dad. He’s a big picture guy and a problem-solver, and I always thought that is the best way to approach life. I try and do that when I can.

Q: When are you the happiest?
A: When my kids are happy and feel successful at whatever they are doing. Whether it’s at a swim meet, horsing around in the pool, or at the beach, if they are having fun then I am too.

Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu