Tag Archives: Shakespeare and Company

“Mourir auprès de toi”

Posted on March 18, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Directed by the inimitable Spike Jonze the short film “Mourir auprès de toi” (“To Die by Your Side”), which takes its title from one of the emotionally wrenching Smiths’ song, is a love story for booklovers, set in Paris’ beloved … Continue reading →

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a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read

Posted on December 24, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

“The truth is that even big collections of ordinary books distort space, as can readily be proved by anyone who has been around a really old-fashioned secondhand bookshop, one that looks as though they were designed by M. Escher on … Continue reading →

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Help Save a Paris Landmark

Posted on November 2, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

I have had the pleasure of visiting Paris many times over the last 40 years. And ever time that I’m in Paris the iconic bookstore Shakespeare and Company is one of my first stops. Even if you have never been … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Bookstore Tourism, Europe, History, Libraries | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Discovering the Lost Generation in Paris

Posted on May 22, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

Decades ago, I made my first biblio-pilgrimage to the iconic Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris. These days it’s not quite the same place now that it has an adjoining café that serves American bagels and brownies. And then there are the … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Bookstore Tourism, Europe, History, Libraries, Tourism, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Wild Books

Posted on May 11, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

“Second hand books are wild books, homeless books; they have come together in vast flocks of variegated feather, and have a charm which the domesticated volumes of the library lack.”                      … Continue reading →

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Books and Bagels Berlin

Posted on January 5, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

In our ongoing bookstore tourism journey, today we’re taking a brief look at Shakespeare and Sons in Berlin. Owned and managed by Roman and Laurel Kratochvila. The shop has branches in trendy Prenzlauerberg and Friedrichshain. The proprietors got their start in the … Continue reading →

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Be not inhospitable to strangers

Posted on September 11, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

For book lovers around the world, Shakespeare and Company in the heart of Paris is emblematic of the ideal independent bookshop. Even bibliophiles who have never been to Paris feel as though they know Shakespeare and Company. After all, it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Bookstore Tourism, Europe, Restaurants, Tourism, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment