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A review by kailafitz
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
5.0
Words will never do this book justice in my mind.
Trop mignon, trop beau...se trouve en France.....c'est un livre de mes rêves...
I lived in this book. I'm not sure how to describe this, lots of books have hit me hard, but this one took me in, wrapped it's arms around me and told me of a story that will forever stay in my heart.
This is all very personal because of my taste, but for me, this book whispered my biggest hopes and dreams to me in the most beautiful language, set in the most beautiful place in the world.
“We turn peculiar when we don’t have anyone left to love.”
Jean Perdu. John Lost. Now 50 years old, he lives in Paris, 27 Rue Montagnard.
He has neighbours, but he doesn't have friends.
When Catherine 'Le P' moves into his apartment block under sad circumstances, an evening with the damaged woman reflects the damage in himself.
It is then that the cracks, once sealed long ago so wrongly, are ripped open. And our story begins.
“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.”
A bookseller on the river Seine, Monsieur Perdu is unique in the act of soul reading as he recommends books and stories to his customers based on what he thinks they need, rather than on what they think they want. His ability to read people allows him to share his extensive knowledge on books, on what has been his whole life, living on the book barge.
He sees himself as more than a bookseller, almost like a healer, a book doctor. As Nina George tells us, “...it was a common misconception that booksellers looked after books. They look after people.”
“A bird awoke inside his chest, and it cautiously spread its wings, amazed to find that it was still alive.”
A letter. It would change everything. Past. Present. Future. Everything comes back as the letter he hid away for 20 years reveals a terrible truth that breaks Perdu all over again. The pain, the awful pain that has always filled him, that he has carried around for the decades since, both crushes and opens him up. He starts to see his life, or rather lack of, for what it truly is, the state of his mind and body. He is no longer living, nor has he been for many years. He has wasted his life because of his own foolishness and stupidity, and now, now it is too late.
Cutting the ropes loose on his barge from Paris, Jean will embark on a journey through the rivers and canals of France to find the peace he has longed for.
“She was the world breathing.”
1986, Jean fell in love with the vibrant, soulfull Manon Morello from the Provencal region at the bright age of 24. Though Manon was already engaged, her love for life and freedom, meant that her heart was open to both Jean and Luc Basset, whom she loved and cared for so deeply, but differently. For 5 years, Jean and Manon spent as much time together as they could, exploring life, their freedom, their dreams, discovering passion and seeking themselves, intertwining their souls.
Her sudden departure one morning, with nothing left of her but a letter, meant that Jean has been living a life unable to love or trust, and henceforth, he has led himself to believe that he is unlovable.
Of course, had he read the letter back then, the past 20 years of his life could have so much different.
“Habit is a vain and treacherous goddess. She lets nothing disrupt her rule. She smothers one desire after another: the desire to travel, the desire for a better job or a new love. She stops us from living as we would like, because habit prevents us from asking ourselves whether we continue to enjoy doing what we do.”
Along with young, estranged author, Max Jordan, the two men spontaneously set off with the bare essentials on the book boat. Heading for Provence, Jean seeks closure while Max seeks inspiration for his writing.
Spurred on by his grief and coming to terms with his life, Jean takes the time to reflect. At 50, he has no prospects. He sees his great loss in life, and he cannot admit to Max the truth about Manon.
“Do we only decide in retrospect that we've been happy? Don't we notice when we're happy, or do we realize only much later that we were?”
On their journey, Jean and Max embrace the natural beauty of their country along the rivers and canals, in the serenity of the surrounding countryside, and upon the stories of people from the many villages that mark their voyage.
Lined vineyards giving off aromas of rich wine, dotted fields of scented yellow and purple flowers, graceful mountains and rolling hills and glistening heat, the purity of the lands welcome them.
Jean and Max learn to love their souls through dance, through the art of cuisine, through the acts of friendship and comradery. They find their worthiness for love, the discovery that one is truly lovable and is capable of loving after so long.
Finding calm moments of peace, bright moments of light, Jean begins to open up. His impulsive decision to cut off from his miserable life in Paris will in the end, lead to something far greater.
“Sanary says that you have to travel south by water to find answers to your dreams. He says too that you find yourself again there, but only if you get lost on the way—completely lost. Through love. Through longing. Through fear. Down south they listen to the sea in order to understand that laughing and crying sound the same, and that the soul sometimes needs to cry to be happy.”
In the destined region of Provence, in the region of Manon Morella, Jean opens up to his grief, allowing himself to fall apart. Alone, he settles in Sanary - sur - Mer, the little coastal town. He drowns his sorrows in the sea, in the fresh air, in the vibrant colours of the petite houses that line the sidewalks.
He relives every moment of her, with her, in his mind, finally taking the time he never took to bask in the sorrow and great happiness of their relationship.
He falls apart, letting Manon go piece by piece, until he finally begins to build himself back up again.
Until he has the strength to face her.
“We are immortal in the dreams of our loved ones. And our dead live on after their deaths in our dreams.”
Ce roman, est juste incroyable. Mon amour de cette histoire est infinie.
The style and writing is so mesmerizing and rhythmic in this book. Attention to detail was exquisite, especially when it came to describing all the scenery of the French cultured countryside and the gorgeous villages and towns. So very sensual in sight, sound, smell, touch and taste.
As a person besotted with France and everything French, this book appealed to me on so many levels, I feel like it reflects parts of me deep within.
“Dreams are the interface between the worlds, between time and space.”
France, Paris, Provence. A lost romance. A voyage, both metaphoric and realistic.
A bookseller, a booklover.
What is not to love about this book?
“Everybody has an inner room where demons lurk. Only when we open it and face up to it are we free.”
Monsieur Jean Perdu. What a lovely character. I felt for the complete lack of misunderstanding that suddenly made his life seem a waste. Everything he ever believed turned out to be something totally different, as he spent his life mourning the wrong thing altogether. The emotions he had to overcome, finding not only Manon but himself more importantly. Living, learning, seeing inside himself and then outside. I was so happy to see him have his happiness. I felt the process was very realistic and it came together all so beautifully in the end. Because we learn the truth at the beginning, the whole story was tinged with a deep sadness and the ending bittersweet.
How beautiful.
“Oh merciless freedom, you continue to overwhelm me! You demand that I challenge myself and feel ashamed, and yet continue to feel so outrageously proud to live a life full of my desires.”
We get a glimpse of the wild girl that had such an impact on Jean Perdu from those years ago. The few entries that we get from Manon seem to tell us all we need to know, and I fell in love with her character at that.
“Whenever Monsieur Perdu looked at a book, he did not see it purely in terms of a story, minimum retail price and an essential balm for the soul; he saw freedom on wings of paper.”
J'ai adoré ce livre, l'histoire m'est très chére <3
Merci mille fois, Nina George, pour ce roman.
Trop mignon, trop beau...se trouve en France.....c'est un livre de mes rêves...
I lived in this book. I'm not sure how to describe this, lots of books have hit me hard, but this one took me in, wrapped it's arms around me and told me of a story that will forever stay in my heart.
This is all very personal because of my taste, but for me, this book whispered my biggest hopes and dreams to me in the most beautiful language, set in the most beautiful place in the world.
“We turn peculiar when we don’t have anyone left to love.”
Jean Perdu. John Lost. Now 50 years old, he lives in Paris, 27 Rue Montagnard.
He has neighbours, but he doesn't have friends.
When Catherine 'Le P' moves into his apartment block under sad circumstances, an evening with the damaged woman reflects the damage in himself.
It is then that the cracks, once sealed long ago so wrongly, are ripped open. And our story begins.
“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.”
A bookseller on the river Seine, Monsieur Perdu is unique in the act of soul reading as he recommends books and stories to his customers based on what he thinks they need, rather than on what they think they want. His ability to read people allows him to share his extensive knowledge on books, on what has been his whole life, living on the book barge.
He sees himself as more than a bookseller, almost like a healer, a book doctor. As Nina George tells us, “...it was a common misconception that booksellers looked after books. They look after people.”
“A bird awoke inside his chest, and it cautiously spread its wings, amazed to find that it was still alive.”
A letter. It would change everything. Past. Present. Future. Everything comes back as the letter he hid away for 20 years reveals a terrible truth that breaks Perdu all over again. The pain, the awful pain that has always filled him, that he has carried around for the decades since, both crushes and opens him up. He starts to see his life, or rather lack of, for what it truly is, the state of his mind and body. He is no longer living, nor has he been for many years. He has wasted his life because of his own foolishness and stupidity, and now, now it is too late.
Cutting the ropes loose on his barge from Paris, Jean will embark on a journey through the rivers and canals of France to find the peace he has longed for.
“She was the world breathing.”
1986, Jean fell in love with the vibrant, soulfull Manon Morello from the Provencal region at the bright age of 24. Though Manon was already engaged, her love for life and freedom, meant that her heart was open to both Jean and Luc Basset, whom she loved and cared for so deeply, but differently. For 5 years, Jean and Manon spent as much time together as they could, exploring life, their freedom, their dreams, discovering passion and seeking themselves, intertwining their souls.
Her sudden departure one morning, with nothing left of her but a letter, meant that Jean has been living a life unable to love or trust, and henceforth, he has led himself to believe that he is unlovable.
Of course, had he read the letter back then, the past 20 years of his life could have so much different.
“Habit is a vain and treacherous goddess. She lets nothing disrupt her rule. She smothers one desire after another: the desire to travel, the desire for a better job or a new love. She stops us from living as we would like, because habit prevents us from asking ourselves whether we continue to enjoy doing what we do.”
Along with young, estranged author, Max Jordan, the two men spontaneously set off with the bare essentials on the book boat. Heading for Provence, Jean seeks closure while Max seeks inspiration for his writing.
Spurred on by his grief and coming to terms with his life, Jean takes the time to reflect. At 50, he has no prospects. He sees his great loss in life, and he cannot admit to Max the truth about Manon.
“Do we only decide in retrospect that we've been happy? Don't we notice when we're happy, or do we realize only much later that we were?”
On their journey, Jean and Max embrace the natural beauty of their country along the rivers and canals, in the serenity of the surrounding countryside, and upon the stories of people from the many villages that mark their voyage.
Lined vineyards giving off aromas of rich wine, dotted fields of scented yellow and purple flowers, graceful mountains and rolling hills and glistening heat, the purity of the lands welcome them.
Jean and Max learn to love their souls through dance, through the art of cuisine, through the acts of friendship and comradery. They find their worthiness for love, the discovery that one is truly lovable and is capable of loving after so long.
Finding calm moments of peace, bright moments of light, Jean begins to open up. His impulsive decision to cut off from his miserable life in Paris will in the end, lead to something far greater.
“Sanary says that you have to travel south by water to find answers to your dreams. He says too that you find yourself again there, but only if you get lost on the way—completely lost. Through love. Through longing. Through fear. Down south they listen to the sea in order to understand that laughing and crying sound the same, and that the soul sometimes needs to cry to be happy.”
In the destined region of Provence, in the region of Manon Morella, Jean opens up to his grief, allowing himself to fall apart. Alone, he settles in Sanary - sur - Mer, the little coastal town. He drowns his sorrows in the sea, in the fresh air, in the vibrant colours of the petite houses that line the sidewalks.
He relives every moment of her, with her, in his mind, finally taking the time he never took to bask in the sorrow and great happiness of their relationship.
He falls apart, letting Manon go piece by piece, until he finally begins to build himself back up again.
Until he has the strength to face her.
“We are immortal in the dreams of our loved ones. And our dead live on after their deaths in our dreams.”
Ce roman, est juste incroyable. Mon amour de cette histoire est infinie.
The style and writing is so mesmerizing and rhythmic in this book. Attention to detail was exquisite, especially when it came to describing all the scenery of the French cultured countryside and the gorgeous villages and towns. So very sensual in sight, sound, smell, touch and taste.
As a person besotted with France and everything French, this book appealed to me on so many levels, I feel like it reflects parts of me deep within.
“Dreams are the interface between the worlds, between time and space.”
France, Paris, Provence. A lost romance. A voyage, both metaphoric and realistic.
A bookseller, a booklover.
What is not to love about this book?
“Everybody has an inner room where demons lurk. Only when we open it and face up to it are we free.”
Monsieur Jean Perdu. What a lovely character. I felt for the complete lack of misunderstanding that suddenly made his life seem a waste. Everything he ever believed turned out to be something totally different, as he spent his life mourning the wrong thing altogether. The emotions he had to overcome, finding not only Manon but himself more importantly. Living, learning, seeing inside himself and then outside. I was so happy to see him have his happiness. I felt the process was very realistic and it came together all so beautifully in the end. Because we learn the truth at the beginning, the whole story was tinged with a deep sadness and the ending bittersweet.
How beautiful.
“Oh merciless freedom, you continue to overwhelm me! You demand that I challenge myself and feel ashamed, and yet continue to feel so outrageously proud to live a life full of my desires.”
We get a glimpse of the wild girl that had such an impact on Jean Perdu from those years ago. The few entries that we get from Manon seem to tell us all we need to know, and I fell in love with her character at that.
“Whenever Monsieur Perdu looked at a book, he did not see it purely in terms of a story, minimum retail price and an essential balm for the soul; he saw freedom on wings of paper.”
J'ai adoré ce livre, l'histoire m'est très chére <3
Merci mille fois, Nina George, pour ce roman.