1.   At heart, Sperling is a leftist-turned-entrepreneur, a union organizer who became the boss.

2.   If Sperling is an Horatio Alger character, Hawthorne is pure Marin.

3.   If Sperling is an Horatio Alger character, Hawthorne is pure Marin County, Calif.

4.   Sperling was born and reared in Manhattan, coming to his passion for books early.

5.   Sperling is hardly ready to turn over his coffee cup.

6.   Sperling was deeply ashamed of his father, who failed miserably at farming and was often out of work.