Let’s dish about Julie Gaines‘ graphic memoir Minding the Store. It’s a big story about a small business, as the subtitle explains, and it has a lot to say to anyone who doesn’t want to follow the standard path. As the co-founder of the eclectic and beloved Fishs Eddy housewares store and brand (you know their iconic New York City skyline design on dishes and towels — see below — that made everyone feel like a New Yorker after September 11, 2001), Julie has a story to tell, “revealing . . . compelling in its very personal details,” as the New York Times put it.

She recounts the ups and downs — and ups again — of starting a family business, starting a family, and staying true to one’s path. This graphic memoir, illustrated by her son, Ben Lenovitz (which makes the book yet another family enterprise) is filled with funny and loving characterizations of opinionated relatives, nosy neighbors, quirky employees, and, above all, the eccentricities of the founders themselves.

“An anti-business business book: it is a radical endeavor. Yet Minding the Store: A Big Story about a Small Business is an antidote for anyone who wants insights from successful people but is bored by jargon and unable to face another turgid tome from a bleach-toothed billionaire,” The Financial Times wrote. “The result is a delightful book . . . moving, funny and interesting.”

Speaking of funny, Julie is. Check out some of these delightful interviews she has given:

•amNewYork: “If you do anything for more than 30 years in New York City, I think you probably have something to say.”

•Bedford + Bowery: “What if we just opened a little store, just committed to rent for a year, and see how it goes?”

•Architectural Digest: “We always loved to walk into factories and ask, ‘Is there anything you want to get rid of?’”

And take a look at this gallery of photos from the Minding the Store launch party at the Fishs Eddy store in New York: