The Little Paris Bookshop

While we're looking at books in Paris, it seems like a good time to share this little gem with you....

Amazon  |  Book Depository

Summary (via Goodreads): Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself; he's still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.

After Perdu is finally tempted to read the letter, he hauls anchor and departs on a mission to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story. Joined by a bestselling but blocked author and a lovelorn Italian chef, Perdu travels along the country’s rivers, dispensing his wisdom and his books, showing that the literary world can take the human soul on a journey to heal itself.

Review (3/5 stars): This is one of those books that I feel like I'm supposed to like, but had a very hard time getting into.

At first it reminded me a bit of Amelie, with lots of quirky characters with just a pinch of something magical in the air. But it became very deep and maybe even a little esoteric about 1/3 of the way through.

I gave it a break and came back to it with a refreshed determination to love it and I really did enjoy most of the middle part. As each of the characters begins to figure out what it is they're each looking for, the story line picks up steam and I could relate to them all more and more.

This is not an easy read, but I think it's something that any book lover can learn to love and find meaning in.

Did you know that there really are book barges all over the world?!?!  I picture Perdu's book Apothecary much large than this, but what a fun and cozy place any of these would be to shop. What's the most interesting book store you've ever visited?  Mine was a great little shop on an island in the south of Thailand, where the floors were sand!  I got some of my favourite books there.  How about you?  Be the first to leave a comment below!