Shakespeare
and Company: the historic Parisian bookstore is in danger of closure
Ethan
Hawke and Darren Aronfsky spent the night there in exchange for tidying up the
shelves. The pandemic is too cruel.
A
special place in Paris.
There
are bookstores that have large collections of books and then there are
bookstores that are not just stores, but authentic homes for the writer. This
is the case of Shakespeare and Company, an iconic bookstore in Paris which may
close soon.
“Lonely
Planet” tells us that the bookstore has sent an email to its customers
acknowledging the difficult situation in which they find themselves. The drop
in sales has been more than 80% since March, the month when the new coronavirus
began to be felt in force in Europe. As the bills accumulate, the bookstore can
close its doors on December 1st.
The
original space was founded by Sylvia Beach in the year following World War I,
1919, and has been visited by names like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway,
TS Eliot and James Joyce. It was called Le Mistral when in 1951 the bookstore
resumed its life, in the hands of an American based in Paris, George Whitman.
In
1964, the year of the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the birth of
William Shakespeare, Whitman decided to change his name by paying homage not
only to the greatest figure of letters, but also to the former owner of the store.
Sylvia, by the way, was the name she gave her daughter.
Since
then, Shakespeare and Company has grown into a space that authors cherish like
few others. Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Anaïs Nin and James Baldwin are
among the visitors to the store when it reopens.
The
site was also known to have a sofa that served as a den for several guests.
Actor Ethan Hawke and director Darren Arronofsky are among the personalities
who have spent the night there. The stay was paid for by the work in the store,
the installation of the shelves.
After
George’s death, his daughter, Sylvia Whitman, took over the store. In the email
to customers, the owner details a few simple ways that customers can help. The
bookstore sells cloth bags and in addition to books you can purchase vouchers
to use in the future. The store also has a special ongoing subscription that
gives access to a year of reading: there are 12 books that people will receive,
one per month for a year, the choice being left to the bookstore team.
The
space has become not only a place for lovers of letters but also a picturesque
space which generally receives the attention of tourists who come to Paris in
search of small hiding places in the city.