Librairie Americaine

So I just finished finals and I will be train bound for Germany and Czech soon. Let me repeat: my classes are OVER (until September 2010), I am going on Spring Break to Germany and Czech Republic!

Having classes for only the first 6 weeks was insanely fast, but I really progressed a lot in French. It was mostly the immersion and communication class that helped me progress, but being able to carry on a conversation about modern art while using the subjunctive- always makes for a crowd pleaser. Classes culminated in three back-to-back finals on Friday and then I received a package of cookies from my Nana. Perfect ending! I did a little spring shopping and some friends and I went to "The Princess and the Frog", classic Parisian bar, to celebrate.

Saturday after I was packed, I realized that I needed some entertainment for my hours of travel via train, so I went in search of American Bookstores in Paris. I have a book of short children's stories, Le Petit Nicholas, in French but I needed some American authors support.


First I went to Shakespear & Co. (near Notre Dame), which is probably the most well known American bookstore. It's a tiny little shop with more used books than the Boston Public Library. They are slammed in bookshelves, stacked on stools, and hidden in every crease of the store. They also literally have every genre available, from French History and Politics to Cooking. The best part is climbing the sliding ladders to reach the books on the top shelves. I picked up 2 used books there for 7 Euro!

Next I stopped at Berkeley Books, a 5 minute walk from Shakespeare & Co. This store was neatly packed with books of various genres and a lot more international/cultural focused. I picked up one trashy novel here, Weekend in Paris, about a 21 year old girl that goes to Paris on a whim and falls in love with the city.

My book excursion ended up taking me almost 2 hours, as I wound through the little streets and looked at all the bookseller stands. The quarter that I was in is known for it's cafes, libraries (la bibliotheque in French), librairies (bookstores), and a past hang out of some amazing Parisian writers. I still need to explore the book sellers along the Seine. They sell used books out of blue stands that line the river, it's supposed to be a lot of fun!