a stroll through the bouquinistes

one of the most memorable spot in paris for me was the bouquinistes stalls along the seine river. this is where you can find over 200 vendors, selling rare, new and used books / sheet music and other small collectibles while walking along the seine river. everything is contained in these large green, metal boxes (which you can see above) and around lunch time they open them all and expose all their little treasures. we picked up lots of sheet music, old postcards, and a couple prints. what you see above framed is just some of what we picked up and now have on display.

book hit-list: a moveable feast

in case you missed the original post, this summer i have dedicated myself to catching up on what i consider the literary basics. books i should have read by now, but they've somehow slipped through the cracks. the first book i can cross off the list is a moveable feast by ernest hemingway (which callum picked up in paris at shakespeare and company, the very store hemingway devotes a chapter to describing in the novel). this review may be a little prejudiced as i just traveled to paris last september, but reading this book brought me back to that little cafe just outside of our apartment. hemingway can describe a scene like no other, he's straight to the point, with little use of abjectives, but he still paints a beautiful picture and you feel like you're sitting right beside him taking it all in. the book is a memoir to his early days in paris (1920's) as a poor, but happy writer. you meet prolific writers along the way, such as scott fitzgerald and james joyce. i'd like to hear what people think of the book who have not visited paris themselves, because if you have, i don't see how you couldn't fall in love with it.

next up on my book hit-list is brave new world by aldous huxley. a novel which anticipates how humans will approach reproductive technology in the future, and our changing society. let's hope i won't be able to put this one down as well.

shakespeare and company - paris, france

i was lucky enough to visit paris last fall for the first time. it is a truly beautiful city and from the moment i hopped on the plane back to the yyz i have been  devising a plan to return. on my list of "life goals" living in paris for at least a year is in my 5 year plan (first i need to learn french!). these shots are from shakespeare and company, THE bookstore to visit while visiting the city of lights. shopping here was the reason i had to cram so much into my purse for the flight back as the books weighed a ton! when you purchase a book at shakespeare and company they stamp the inside of your book which just makes them all the more special.

my top three finds were (well callum found the first one) perfume: the story of a murderer, the wild boys by william s. burroughs, and we have always lived in the castle.