Founded in 1961 by an American and a Canadian The Abbey bookshop is a piece of literary heaven, cozily tucked away on a side street, just a few blocks from Notre Dame. This shop is filled floor to ceiling with books of all genres that will have you lost in its tiny corners all day long. The street it can be found on has literary importance as well, located on rue de la Parcheminerie, once named rue des Escrivains, for the scribes who were at the heart of the Parisian book trade until they were replaced by parchment makers in the late Middle Ages. So, it is safe to say that this is a great spot to start your book adventures!
We couldn’t think of a better combination than a cup of hot tea and a good book, especially on a rainy day in Paris. Formerly known as WHSmith, Smith and Son bookstore and tearoom located right across from the Jardin des Tuileries is one of the oldest in Paris. It was opened in 1870 by the Neal brothers, whose book and stationery shop served as a hub for Parisians looking to discover the typical English teatime. The shop closed for the first time in 2021 (for the first time since 1944), the simplified Smith and Son features expanded wall shelves and a restored central staircase as well as its original 1908 stained glass windows and three tasting rooms!
The Red Wheelbarrow Bookshop is a quaint independent bookshop located in the 6th arrondissement. It is perfectly situated in front of the Luxembourg Gardens, one of our favorite Paris parks to spend the afternoon reading away!
Many people are familiar with Shakespeare and Company, and we mean many. This may be Paris’ most popular bookshop – for good reason! This literary institution was started in 1951 under the name Le Mistral, the American founder George Whitman changed its name in April 1964, on the 400th birthday of William Shakespeare himself in honor of Sylvia Beach, the American bookseller and publisher who founded the original Shakespeare and Company in 1919. The store can be found on the left bank of Paris, at Kilometer Zero, the point at which all French roads begin. The bookshop was founded with the motto “be not inhospitable to strangers, lest they be angels in disguise”. From the first day—writers and artists were invited to sleep for free, under the notion that they read a book a day, helped at the shop for a few hours a day, and produce a one-page autobiography. Since then, more than 30,000 people have stayed within these walls!
While the Librairie Galignani has been in Paris since the 1800s, their history goes back even further, to 1520s Italy. They are said to have been one of the first bookmakers to use the newly invented printing press to distribute their books to a larger audience. They offer a unique option for those looking for hard-to-find literature - if they do not stock the book, you are after, they can order it in-store for you (even if the book is out of print) and ship it to you anywhere in the world!
You can pick up a copy of our founder's book The French Ingredient in any of the above-mentioned bookshops!
