VISTA —— Bob Wayne, a longtime customer and unofficial worker at the I Love Books store on East Vista Way, has taken over as the new owner after longtime merchant Stan Katz presented Wayne with the shop last month.

For years, Wayne —— a bar owner and book scout —— often manned the bookstore counter for Katz and organized the shop's huge collection of secondhand books into categories and subcategories.

All 40,000 odd titles, some of them barely used, became his friends, Wayne said.

"Some nights I even slept there," Wayne said. "It became a higher calling."

Last month, Katz deeded the store over to Wayne. The shop is now called Bob's I Love Books.

"He earned it by sweat equity, and that's the best kind of equity there is," Katz said.

Customers at the store had already come to depend on Wayne, who they say knows the inventory better than anyone.

"I'd come looking for a specific author or title and Bob always knew where I could find it," said Vista resident Norman Fried, a longtime customer.

Fried said he even wrote a letter to a neighborhood paper about the treasures in the store, which he patronizes "almost weekly."

Other customers said Wayne has helped the store maintain its appeal to local book-lovers.

"I never know what new goody will be on his shelves," said Phylllis MacMahon of Vista, about Wayne's ever-changing stock. "He gets books in trade, and even donated titles, daily."

Wayne is so popular with regular customers, that many look for special ways to show their appreciation. Fried said that on his first trip to the store, he saw a customer bring in a homemade chocolate cake for Wayne's birthday.

When Wayne took over as the new owner of the store, he said, he received many plants, flowers and congratulations.

Wayne has also befriended many of Vista's homeless and often leaves extra books outside on a small table for them to take and read. Often, they bring books from garage sales and knickknacks that Wayne will then purchase.

"I don't usually buy used books for cash —— I'll take them in trade," Wayne says. "But every now and then there's an exception, especially if the book is a rare one."

Patrons are complimentary about Wayne's trade-in policy. When a customer buys one of the store's several-hundred Books on Tape, Wayne refunds 50 percent of the price when they return it for resale. Because he is so knowledgeable about the titles, he can recommend tapes for trips or commutes, and does a lively business in them, he said.

Bob's I Love Books often gets rare book titles, and these are listed on the Internet by former employee Dale Sydenstrucker.

"Last month, a customer came in and purchased the entire Internet inventory," Wayne said, though a whole new group of titles appears to have replaced them.

Bob's I Love Books is open from 9 a.m.to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Phone number is (760) 945-7718.

Letty Linhart lives in Vista. A writer for 50 years, she has been listed in Who's Who in America since 1995 and is the author of nine books. She can be reached at (760) 726-7363