Titanically Speaking:
My interest in Titanic can be summed up in just three words; books, books, books! I started reading and collecting books on the subject about 15 years ago. My Great Quest is to own at least one copy of every book on the subject ever printed.

Considering the volume of volumes, and the deplorable lack of an inexhaustible bank account, this may be a lost cause, but hey! strive for the stars, right? So how many Titanic books are out there? Well, as you can see from this website, there are an enormous number of titles, and those are just the ones I am aware of. Plus there are more being printed all the time. As of the publication of this site, I had managed to acquire about a third of all the books listed here. Since then I have kept plugging away, and am probably getting close to owning about half of the titles listed. I continue to work on it as time and funds allow!

Professionally Speaking:
I have had a long and checkered career in a wide range of occupations. Bet I’m the only person you know (figuratively speaking, of course) that has made M&Ms for a living. Not only did I work at the plant in Hackettstown, New Jersey, but I was there for the triumphant return of the red M&M. (For those of you who are elderly challenged, there were several decades when there were no red M&Ms as the original red dye used was found to have some health issues associated with it).

Amongst other occupations I worked at the Tampa shipyards sandblasting ships for a couple years (hoo boy, could I tell some hair-raising stories about those times), and at the opposite extreme did some programming work when COBOL was still the hot thing in computer languages.

All of which is ancient history. For the last 15 years I have had the great privilege of owning my own out of print bookstore dealing in antiquarian and collectible books. My store, The Book Corner, started in the corner of a small antique mall (hence the name). In time I expanded to take over the entire business, with the bookstore filling about half the storefront (the other half is still antiques).

Currently we have approximately 20,000 collectible hardcover books on a wide range of subjects; books about everything from Aborigines to Zulus. Naturally I try to keep a decent supply of Titanic books on hand, though obviously the scarce items are difficult to find.

If you would like to see what books I have on any particular subject, you can access my inventory on the bookstore's website:

Personally Speaking:
My formative years were spent in Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey. This is in the northwestern part of the state, in the foothills of the Appalachians. It is a beautiful part of the state (bet you didn’t know there was such a thing, eh?), but these days the area suffers from a preponderance of people. Way, way too many people. Commutes to and from work are measured in hours, or so I am told.

About 20 years ago I moved to Florida for the completely insufficient reason that my family was going, and I just sorta tagged along. Lived at first in Bradenton, then Orlando, but now am in the Tampa area; and have been for well over 15 years.

I turned 50 years old in 2004, and am looking forward to another half century of adventure. I remain pleasantly married. My wife, Tory, and I continue to share our home with a pack of dogs whose size (of the pack, not the dogs) can vary unexpectedly.

all the best,
Michael ‘TheManInBlack’ Tennaro