The Little Paris Bookshop: A Novel - Nina George, Simon Pare
If ever a novel had the wrong title then this is it. Nina George dedicates the story to "The departed and to those who go on loving them", and this is the essence of the novel. The central character, Jean Perdu is a bookseller and yes, he does sell books, but not from "The Little Paris Bookshop" but from a barge the "Literary Apothecary". Jean Perdu does not just sell books, he dispenses them. He says, “There are books that are suitable for a million people, others for only a hundred. There are even remedies—I mean books—that were written for one person only…A book is both medic and medicine at once. It makes a diagnosis as well as offering therapy. Putting the right novels to the appropriate ailments: that’s how I sell books.”. The story begins in Paris but the floating bookshop is soon sailing south, as Jean Perdu finally faces up to the grief of the loss of the love of his life. A book to savour for all romantics who love books.