Daisy Wood, author of The Forgotten Bookshop in Paris, picks her favorite bookshops!
Everyone who enjoys reading is bound to love a bookstore. This is our happy place, where we can spend hours browsing the shelves in search of new treasures, despite a teetering pile of books still to be read on the bedside table. It’s hard to choose, but here are five of my all-time favorite bookstores from across the world:
Shakespeare and Company, Paris, France: The first Shakespeare and Company was established in Paris in 1919 by the American Sylvia Beach, patron and friend to expat writers like Hemingway and James Joyce. The current store on the banks of the Seine was renamed in honor of the original, and aims to preserve the same freewheeling spirit and literary breadth. ‘I created this bookstore like a man would write a novel,’ said founder George Whitman, ‘building each room like a chapter.’ Also, there are cats!
The Strand, New York City, USA: There’s only one word to describe the Strand: iconic. This literary landmark in the heart of New York is still a family-owned business, full of character and charm despite its size. Knowledgeable staff will help you find whatever you’re looking for, from the latest release to the rarest first edition, among the staggering 18 miles of books.
Atlantis Books, Santorini, Greece: Santorini is one of the most beautiful islands in the Aegean, famous for its sunsets and whitewashed buildings spilling down to the volcanic shore. Six friends drove a van from London to open a bookstore in a sea captain’s house beneath the castle in the village of Oia, building shelves from driftwood and decorating the plastered walls with handpainted poetry. Books in many languages beside Greek are sold in this cool refuge from the burning sun and tourist hordes.
Persephone Books, Bath, England: I adore the Persephone booklist: neglected gems written mostly by women in the twentieth century and brought back to life for the twenty-first. The reprinted books themselves are exquisite, each in a subtle grey jacket with glorious flowery endpapers and matching bookmarks, and the store is a joy: a peaceful haven in one of the most beautiful cities in England. I would like to live there—not just in Bath but in that actual shop.
The Moravian Bookshop, Bethlehem PA, USA: I partly love this bookstore because it’s on the picturesque Main Street of Bethlehem, where my wonderful American cousins live. Apart from that USP, it’s also the oldest bookstore in America—founded in 1745—and the oldest continuously operating bookstore in the world. There are friendly staff, tons of books (including textbooks for the nearby Moravian University students), craft beers, delicious food and coffee. What’s not to like? (No cats, though.)
