Opening Chapter Blag

Read Around Paris
By Michele Helene

As an expat living overseas, one of the first things I do is check out the English language bookshops; not having access to books is like not having access to fresh air. Admittedly you have to pay a bit more for the books and the shops do not tend to be overflowing with the three for two offers, but this is one of the crosses to bear when you choose to live abroad. Luckily for me, Paris tends to cater for its Anglophone community rather well in the literature department; here is a smattering of some of my discoveries and a few favourites.

On first arriving in Paris the first bookshop I was told about was WH Smiths. Its reassuring Britishness meant that it was one I had to visit. While it is filled with the usual fare: newspapers, magazines, DVD’s, games, greeting cards and of course books, it is a far cry from the bland bright interiors I have come to associate with this store in Britain. It’s glitzy location on rue de Rivoli, opposite the Jardin de Tuileries and just off Concorde, means that it is often filled with a healthy spattering of surprised Anglophone tourists as well as Parisian regulars. Downstairs are posters advertising book readings and events for expats, while upstairs its interior of dark wooden beams and uneven floors gives the impression of a mediaeval bookshop. While I find Smiths a little on the pricey side, you can rely on it to find books on any subject, the staff are generally helpful (as long as you can speak French) and they will order books in for you.

Next up was Tea & Tattered Pages, which I am afraid is how I would have to describe the state of the books that were there. This was a accidental discovery as it was a couple of doors from an Anglophone video store. Perhaps it was the fact that I could never master their opening hours – they always seemed to be shut when I passed by, but the outcome was that I never felt encouraged to purchase anything from this tiny shop tucked away in the back streets of the 6th arrondissement.

The San Francisco Book Company on the other hand was a completely different matter. Again this was an accidental find, near the famous ‘Dix bar’ in the Latin Quarter where the soixantehuitards planned yet another revolution back in the day. The San Francisco Book Company is also a second hand book shop and a veritable treasure trove. They offer a comprehensive range at very reasonable prices. It is also evident that the owners are book lovers from the condition of the books they take on, only well treated books are bought. If you are a traveller passing through Paris and want to unload some of your paperbacks this shop is well worth a visit.

The Red Wheelbarrow is so named after a William Carlos Williams poem. This small store in the heart of the Marais district of Paris, is a little on the kooky side, a bit like the poem. Crammed from floor to ceiling with books, you can be sure to receive a warm welcome as well as a flash book review if you so request. The shop runs events, book signings and trade fares in Anglophone schools in Paris. You feel confident that the founders of the shop know their books and if it is cheerful helpful staff you are after then you won’t find a happier place. Again the books are reasonably priced and if you can’t find exactly what you are after, they can order in, or make alternative suggestions.

Lastly, Shakespeare & Company, located opposite Notre Dame on the left bank this bookshop is the epitome of madness. The building is one of the last remnants of mediaeval Paris, and is a cross between a bibliophile’s dream and a claustrophobic’s nightmare. In a world where the Dewey decimal system exists this shop should not. There are books everywhere, along with a healthy spattering of cats, tourists hoping to get a glimpse of the infamous founder of the bookstore George Whitman and volunteer workers popping up from barely visible beds
(Whitman continues to allow penniless travellers to stay in the bookshop in return for a couple of hours work a day). It is sometimes difficult to tell who is actually a customer there, or indeed to find anything in the wild jumble of books that are in someway organised, yet this shop has become a ‘must do’ for the Parisian visitor; I even met one traveller who had travelled all they way from Australia specially to stay in the shop after reading about it in one of Bill Bryson’s book. Whatever the draw of the shop; the location or the history, Shakespeare & Co is definitely an inspiration to every ‘would be’ writer in Paris with its comprehensive list of readings, workshops and even a writers’ group.

So wherever you are in Paris - these shops are fairly evenly spread around the centre – there tends to be a bookshop. In total, although this is in no way an extensive list, they cater to every budget and sensibility, whether it be the order of Smiths or the chaos of Shakespeare & Co. you are sure to find something.

Listing:
WH Smiths
248, rue de Rivoli
75001 Paris
Metro: Concorde

Tea & Tattered Pages
24, rue Mayet
75006 Paris
Metro : Duroc/ Falguière

The San Francisco Book Company
17, rue M. le Prince
75006 Paris
Metro : Odéon

The Red Wheelbarrow Bookstore
22, rue St Paul
75004 Paris
Metro: St Paul

Shakespeare & Co.
37, rue de la Boucherie
75005 Paris
Metro: Cite/ St. Michel

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Michelle Helene writes and blogs at A Wanderer in Paris