Paris, France — The soul of any bibliophagist — or a bibliobibuli, a person who reads too much according to American humorist H.L. Mencken — will never rest until she steps inside the cramp but comfy walls of Shakespeare and Company.
It was a cold February afternoon in the year 2014 when I lined up outside this historic bookshop located on 37 rue de la Bûcherie in Paris. Jeff was with me and was checking out the restaurant nearest to the bookshop in search of a croissant.
I was hungry too but I was already mesmerized by the singing duo who were playing their guitasr infront of the bookshop. They were playing their own music and it was pleasing to the ears.
And then… there was the long line of people waiting to get inside Shakespeare and Company.
That made me so happy: to see people lining up to get inside a bookstore.
Bookstores and libraries are probably one of the least frequented places in my city.
But not in Paris.
Not Shakespeare and Company.
Some history
The first Shakespeare and Company was opened in 1919 but an American expat named Sylvia Beach. It became the meeting place of writers such as James Joyce and Ernest Hemingway, and Ezra Pound.
The bookstore eventually closed in 1940 following the German occupation of France.
It never reopened.
Another American eventually “revived” the famous bookstore.
In 1951, George Whitman opened Le Mistral, which he renamed as, you guess it right, Shakespeare and Company in tribute of the original bookstore. It is located directly opposite the Notre-Dame on the Left Bank.
Old books, café
Aside from the bookstore, Shakespeare and Company also has The Antiquarian, home to old and rare books. Last year, the Shakespeare and Company Café was opened and is currently being run in partnership with Bob’s Bakeshop so expect great pastries and breads with high quality coffee and tea selections.
THE TUMBLEWEEDS
After hurdling the long line of people who were more than eager to get inside the bookstore, I found myself in one corner staring at Hemingway’s works. I then realized I only had 15 euros in my pocket.
I left my wallet with my husband who decided to stay outside and listen to the musicians. I dared not go back outside as I have to line up again so I made a mental note of just buying the cheapest Hemingway book.
I then basked in that familiar book smell and read postcards and notes on the wall.
There, I learned about the Tumbleweeds.
Writers and artists were – and still are – welcomed to sleep in the bookstore. They sleep beside bookshelves, among piles of books, on beds which double as benches in the day. These guests are called Tumbleweeds and are asked to do three things: help at the shop for a few hours, read a book, and produce a one-page autobiography.
According to its website, an estimated 30,00 writers and artists have stayed in the bookshop.
I was seated near the window with a desk and a chair and I had a great view of the Notre-Dame. If we didn’t have children waiting for us to come home, I would have asked Jeff to let me stay in Paris for a couple more days.
Right there – in that little corner of a bookstore inundated by people – I found my spot.
Shakespeare and Company is not a trademarked name so you may find other bookstores bearing this name in other parts of the world. I just recently learned that there is an independent bookstore in Missoula, Montana (two hours away from where we currently reside) with the same name. Check it out here.
I’m currently reading The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George and I am transported back to that short afternoon I spent inside Shakespeare and Company where I daydreamed of witnessing Hemingway, drunk but was completely focused in writing the words that now make up A Moveable Feast.
