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Shakespeare in Paris

There is a very good article in the November 2014 Vanity Fair (written by Bruce Handy) about Shakespeare and Company, the famous bookstore in Paris. Located in the shadow of Notre Dame, the bookshop has been a destination point for writers and readers both well known and unknown. I visited there once by accident many years ago, but didn’t really appreciate its rich history. After all, this bookstore was the first to publish James Joyce’s Ulysses. This was where you might find Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald in the roaring 20’s, Henry Miller and Anais Nin in mid-century, and later still many of the Beat writers and poets. And they’re still coming to this day, writers and readers and lovers of books. Shakespeare and Company has also been featured in two films of note: Richard Linklater’s Before Sunset, and Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris.

The original Shakespeare and Company was founded by Sylvia Beach in 1919, and thrived for many years before closing down during the Nazi occupation. It never reopened. Its next incarnation came in 1964, when George Whitman changed his bookstore’s name to Shakespeare and Company with Sylvia Beach’s blessing (possibly). Another Sylvia is the bookstore’s current owner, George Whitman’s daughter.  Let’s hope that this particular Sylvia can keep her magical bookstore going for many years to come. It appears she’s off to a great start. 

Photo of Shakespeare and Company in Paris