What do you think?
Rate this book
Shakespeare and Company, Paris: A History of the Rag and Bone Shop of the Heart
This is a first-ever history of the legendary bohemian bookstore in Paris. It interweaves essays and poetry from dozens of writers associated with the shop--Allen Ginsberg, Anaïs Nin, Ethan Hawke, Robert Stone and Jeanette Winterson, among others--with hundreds of never-before-seen archival pieces. It includes photographs of James Baldwin, William Burroughs and Langston Hughes, plus a foreword by the celebrated British novelist Jeanette Winterson and an epilogue by Sylvia Whitman, the daughter of the store’s founder, George Whitman.
The book has been edited by Krista Halverson, director of the newly founded Shakespeare and Company publishing house.
The book has been edited by Krista Halverson, director of the newly founded Shakespeare and Company publishing house.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2016
71 people are currently reading
1563 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews
July 17, 2016
Absolutely loved this book. I smiled all the way through. What a storied history.
After reading, I realized I had picked a few books from George's journal notes in the early part to save to a list for my future reading. Only after reading was it clear that across the miles and time that George is still sharing books.
After reading, I realized I had picked a few books from George's journal notes in the early part to save to a list for my future reading. Only after reading was it clear that across the miles and time that George is still sharing books.
March 28, 2018
I understand now why George couldn't write another word after the title bc anything after it paled in comparison, i found among the pages full of the Tumbleweeds's biographies my own feelings mirrored, the generosity i myself experienced in Shakespeare and co, the Lovely people i met there, the Atmosphere itself, the feeling that this is more than a bookshop, that the walls have been witness to so many things;
The short time i spent in Shakespeare and co was one of the few moments i felt completely and utterly alive, just remembering makes my heart beats a bit faster♥
The short time i spent in Shakespeare and co was one of the few moments i felt completely and utterly alive, just remembering makes my heart beats a bit faster♥
September 30, 2016
This book is absolutely magical. It brings me back to the moment of wonder when I walked through the doors of this amazing place and lights the fire of desire to return. Even though I never met George, after reading this book, I feel as if he is now part of my soul. The bookstore and the book have rekindled my desire to read and made words mean something again. I will be reading this book over and over until the pages are unable to be read.
November 30, 2019
Мені пощастило двічі: я доглядала за чудовими папужками, і як нагороду отримала скарб - книгу-біографію однієї особливої паризької книгарні. Дякую хазяйці папуг, що привезла мені цю книгу, а не банальну шоколадку. Не пам’ятаю, щоб коли-небудь читала такі великі, якісні, ілюстровані, хаотичні книги, з малюнками та коміксами, фотографіями й автобіографіями відвідувачів, уривками спогадів, історією довжиною в життя і далі, листами, цитатами та поезією. Більше ніж книгарня, місце богеми - тут можна було вмоститися на нічліг, спонтанно влаштуватися на роботу, поїсти супу, переночувати, провести поетичні читання, закохатися, написати власну книгу, ну і звісно - читати, читати, читати. Відвідувачів хазяїн називав «перекотиполями», адже через книгарню пройшли тисячі; багато хто зайшовши на півгодинки залишався на кілька місяців - за нічліг треба було розплатитися трьома речима: залишити фото з автобіографією на двох сторінках, трохи допомогти з хазяйнуванням і прочитати бодай одну книгу. Власник Джордж Вітман, той ще Безумний Капелюшник - воював з касовими апаратами і ніколи не вів фінансовий облік (можна було купити книгу за копійки, і знайти в ній заховані й забуті заощадження), влаштовував посеред книгарні вогнище, запрошував і переховував усіх мандрівників і романтиків, сперечався із покупцями, і звісно ж до смерті був закоханий у книги. Настільки, що часто виганяв покупців, які націлились на книги, які він так не хотів відривати від серця (що аж надто нагадує одного хитрого ангела...). Книгарню-острівок любові до сих пір утримує донька Вітмана (годі й уявити її шалене дитинство), тож ви і зараз можете зайти туди, якщо часом будете проходити біля Нотр Даму. І наостанок, ще один доказ містичної присутності Азирафаїла - лозунг на одній зі стін книгарні «Be not inhospitable to strangers, lest they turn out to be angels in disguise».
August 2, 2016
A comprehensive history of the Paris bookshop Shakespeare and Co. Beautiful collection of photos, stories, cartoons and poems. Makes you want to visit as soon as possible.
May 7, 2021
George Whitman's bookstore, Shakespeare and Company (named after Sylvia Beach's store from earlier in the 20th century which hosted much of the Lost Generation of writers) has been likened to the Mad Hatter's tea party. After reading this wonderful book, I should say so. From Jeanette Winterson's "Forward" to Sylvia Whitman's (George's daughter) "Epilogue," this book takes its reader on a journey, with George at the helm, through a marvelous literary history, beginning in 1951 to the present day. This is by far the best book about books, bibliomania, bibliophiles, etc. that I have ever read. And believe me, I have read a lot of those kinds of books. I've never had the privilege, yet, of visiting the bookshop, Shakespeare and Company. I now want to more than ever, to not only hand them money for books, but to just breath in its history, memories, special moments, and such. Fortunately, I've been to Lawrence Ferlinghetti's shop in San Francisco, City Lights Books. Ferlinghetti is featured in this book as a frequent guest at Shakespeare and Company and friend of Whitman's.
This book is mostly about Whitman and his bookstore, but it also includes snippets from various "tumbleweeds" who stayed, lived, and worked in the bookshop. The segments from these tumbleweeds help solidify the bookshop's charm and mystique. To add more charm to this book, there are also pieces, intermittently dispersed throughout, of writers who either had readings or were also tumbleweeds, at one point or another, in Whitman's shop. Their insights into Whitman and the bookstore are priceless.
Having never met George Whitman, that opportunity, unfortunately is now lost, I get the sense that this book is a nice painting of his personality and his passion for the written word, but only a tiny piece. I imagine that Whitman was the consummate bibliophile, who "suffered" from acute bibliomania. This is a good thing, mind you. I highly recommend this book for those of you who love reading books about books and books about bibliophiles. I'm so glad I stumbled onto this book. I'll be even happier the day I stumble into Shakespeare and Company for the first time.
This book is mostly about Whitman and his bookstore, but it also includes snippets from various "tumbleweeds" who stayed, lived, and worked in the bookshop. The segments from these tumbleweeds help solidify the bookshop's charm and mystique. To add more charm to this book, there are also pieces, intermittently dispersed throughout, of writers who either had readings or were also tumbleweeds, at one point or another, in Whitman's shop. Their insights into Whitman and the bookstore are priceless.
Having never met George Whitman, that opportunity, unfortunately is now lost, I get the sense that this book is a nice painting of his personality and his passion for the written word, but only a tiny piece. I imagine that Whitman was the consummate bibliophile, who "suffered" from acute bibliomania. This is a good thing, mind you. I highly recommend this book for those of you who love reading books about books and books about bibliophiles. I'm so glad I stumbled onto this book. I'll be even happier the day I stumble into Shakespeare and Company for the first time.
November 25, 2017
Shall we invent a way to travel through time? Yes? That's great! You should know that I (desperately) want to go back to the moment I walked into the world of Shakespeare & Company. It's probably the most enchanting place I've ever visited. To use the words of Jeanette Winterson:
'The shop is like a Tardis - modest enough on the outside, a labyrinth on the inside. Every vertical space is shelved with books of every kind. A rickety staircase carries you like a fairy-tale hero to a warren of rooms on the first floor where you will find treasure. There's a piano, a typewriter in a booth, a few armchairs, a couple of cats, a big reading room looking out onto Notre-Dame...It is uplifting to be here.'
Sounds like heaven on earth, right? Well, it is. Shakespeare & Company (or The Rag & Bone Shop of the Heart) is a place that everyone should visit once. You should get a copy of their 'official' autobiography when you're there. I just finished it, and I've to say that it filled my heart with joy.
So, that's why I want to go back in time. Are you coming along?
'The shop is like a Tardis - modest enough on the outside, a labyrinth on the inside. Every vertical space is shelved with books of every kind. A rickety staircase carries you like a fairy-tale hero to a warren of rooms on the first floor where you will find treasure. There's a piano, a typewriter in a booth, a few armchairs, a couple of cats, a big reading room looking out onto Notre-Dame...It is uplifting to be here.'
Sounds like heaven on earth, right? Well, it is. Shakespeare & Company (or The Rag & Bone Shop of the Heart) is a place that everyone should visit once. You should get a copy of their 'official' autobiography when you're there. I just finished it, and I've to say that it filled my heart with joy.
So, that's why I want to go back in time. Are you coming along?
April 14, 2021
A brilliant biography book of one of the most beautiful bookshops I’ve ever been to - Shakespeare’s and Co. Truly exceptional and impressive collection of pictures, stories, even cartoons are introduced in the book. I tried hard to read it as long as possible as I did not want to lose this sense of being an unknown explorer at the amazing maze of books right in the heart of Paris.
June 15, 2024
Adoro questa libreria, ma non ne conoscevo tutta la storia. Questo libro me l’ha fatta amare ancora di più. Persone come George Whitman ti riconciliano con l’umanità. Grazie a sua figlia Sylvia per aver continuato il suo lavoro.
August 21, 2018
I decided to read this book when I was feeling particularly frayed, thinned, washed out. I thought it would be a nice bit of light reading. The history of a bookshop; what could be nicer? Instead, I found myself simultaneously euphoric and heartbroken. I'm not the sort of person who cries when they read, but I cried with this book. It was so genuine. I felt shattered. It's the story of the shop, but an autobiography. The character of Shakespeare & Co. is imbued in everything from this books egalitarian selections of primary sources to the beautiful and unorthodox binding. It's a scrapbook, an art book, a family photo album. I know this sounds cheesy and exaggerated, but I never expected to find so many feelings in the life of a bookstore. I felt as though all of history was lining up at the storefront, suddenly comprehensible to me. And I'm hopeful, because despite the changing times the shop survives and carries on, if slightly less bohemian and slightly more sanitary than before.
If you love books, if you are a romantic, and if you like finding hope for yourself in odd places, then get your hands on this book. Put down whatever volume you currently have in your hands, get rid of your to-read list, and pick this one up instead. I cannot recommend it enough.
If you love books, if you are a romantic, and if you like finding hope for yourself in odd places, then get your hands on this book. Put down whatever volume you currently have in your hands, get rid of your to-read list, and pick this one up instead. I cannot recommend it enough.
November 23, 2021
This is an incredibly moving book about a magical bookshop. We need more Georges in the world and I hope Shakespeare and Co has every success without losing it's essence. What great writers are yet to pass through it's doors.
"Be not inhospitable to strangers, lest they be angels in disguise."
"There are so many great books in the world all of them islands in the infinity of man's ignorance." George Whitman (page 66)
What a life!
"What a piece of work is a man! how noble in reason!
how infinite in faculty! in form and moving how
express and admirable! in action how like an angel!
in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the
world! the paragon of animals! And yet, to me,
what is this quintessence of dust?"
Hamlet (2.2.295-302) William Shakespeare
"Be not inhospitable to strangers, lest they be angels in disguise."
"There are so many great books in the world all of them islands in the infinity of man's ignorance." George Whitman (page 66)
What a life!
"What a piece of work is a man! how noble in reason!
how infinite in faculty! in form and moving how
express and admirable! in action how like an angel!
in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the
world! the paragon of animals! And yet, to me,
what is this quintessence of dust?"
Hamlet (2.2.295-302) William Shakespeare
January 7, 2019
A wonderful book about the world famous Parisian bookshop, drawing together photos, drawings, workers' autobiographies, writers' memoirs, and even a comic strip, running alongside a fascinating chronology of the shop and its founder, George Whitman. I visited it a few years ago, then read a piece by Jeanette Winterson about the time when she stayed and worked there. All it took was a glance at this book to make me want to read more about it. The design and production values are yet another example of how much love and thought goes into all that is a part of this inspiring institution.
June 12, 2017
What a lovely lovely book. I've been to Shakespeare & Co before, but I MUST go again, now having a way better sense of its vast and rich history. If I had known it was an option to stay there....Loved all the pictures (A child through and through haha) and the excepts of poetry and biographies and anecdotes from Tumbleweeds. The magic of the place and of George is preserved in this book and I'm so grateful that I got to touch a piece of it.
March 6, 2017
"Be not inhospitable to strangers, lest they be angels in disguise."
November 3, 2021
Absolutely my favourite nonfiction book ever! So much LOVE!
June 20, 2023
Just as beautiful as the bookstore itself.
Buy it if you're in Shakespeare and Co.
Buy it if you're in Shakespeare and Co.
February 20, 2023
BRB, going to be a drifter and become a Paris Tumbleweed ❤️
November 30, 2018
Shakespeare and Company is one of the most famous bookstores in the world. Sylvia Beach started it in 1919 as a young American living in Paris. It was an anchor for so many famous writers -- Hemmingway, Fitzgerald, James Joyce, Gertrude Stein. Writers would come and literally stay at the bookstore. In 1941, the bookstore was closed and Sylvia was interned. After WWII, George Whitman, a friend of Sylvia's, opened it up again and it has remained both a wonderful bookstore and a gathering place for writers and readers, both famous and unknown throughout the years. Whitman opened up his bookstore as hotel/hostel in exchange for writing a one page bio for him, working a couple of hours in his store, and promising to read a book a day (he referred to the many people who would come and go from his store as tumbleweeds. No one was a stranger here, everyone was welcome -- the store famously has "Be not inhospitable to strangers lest they be angels in disguise" on the walls. The book is full of letters written to George by tumbleweeds, biographies that people wrote, photos from the last 100 years, poems, and more. Reading this over the course of this week was like getting to return to Paris for a few hours every night.
October 11, 2016
OK. While it is not a great book, it is a book I thoroughly enjoyed. I even wrote to the bookshop the following:
I am a lover of books. I taught high school English for 30 years and now teach composition and literature at the college level. This past year, after moving to a new neighborhood, I co-founded a community book group that has grown from 6 to 23 members in less than a year. As Thomas Jefferson wrote, "I cannot live without books."
I found myself unable to stop reading your bookshop's history book. In fact, I even skipped a couple meals I was so engrossed. Not only does the book capture the romance of the bookstore, it makes me want to never stop reading. It reminds me of the joy that comes with reading and the sweet pain that comes with learning and growth. It is a book that speaks life.
When my husband and I were in Paris this past April, I knew I had "gone to heaven" when I set foot, for the first time, into Shakespeare and Company. I cannot wait to return. Thank you for providing a history of the bookstore that will allow me to live vicariously in the sacred space of Shakespeare and Company until we come again next April.
I am a lover of books. I taught high school English for 30 years and now teach composition and literature at the college level. This past year, after moving to a new neighborhood, I co-founded a community book group that has grown from 6 to 23 members in less than a year. As Thomas Jefferson wrote, "I cannot live without books."
I found myself unable to stop reading your bookshop's history book. In fact, I even skipped a couple meals I was so engrossed. Not only does the book capture the romance of the bookstore, it makes me want to never stop reading. It reminds me of the joy that comes with reading and the sweet pain that comes with learning and growth. It is a book that speaks life.
When my husband and I were in Paris this past April, I knew I had "gone to heaven" when I set foot, for the first time, into Shakespeare and Company. I cannot wait to return. Thank you for providing a history of the bookstore that will allow me to live vicariously in the sacred space of Shakespeare and Company until we come again next April.
April 16, 2020
This is a wonderful history of the current Shakespeare and Company, which was originally founded as Mistral Books by George Whitman, and was renamed Shakespeare and Company in the 60s. The first chapter is an homage to the original Shakespeare and Company, an English-language bookshop opened by Sylvia Beach in 1919 and closed in 1941 during the Nazi occupation of Paris. Whitman opened a bookshop of sorts from his apartment in Paris in 1947, during his student days at the Sorbonne and which evolved into today's Shakespeare and Company. Sylvia Beach was a frequent supporter of Whitman's efforts, and eventually gave him permission to use the 'Shakespeare and Company' name for his store. More than a bookstore, Shakespeare and Company is a cultural and literary phenomenon, and this history provides an outstanding dual portrait of both the place and the founder--Whitman and his store are inextricably linked and deserve no less than this beautifully designed and copiously illustrated book. Highly recommended for anyone who loves browsing in bookstores and reading books.
December 7, 2020
Deeply enjoyed reading about this iconic bookstore and the eccentric George Whitman and his Tumbleweeds. It does not cover the period of time Sylvia Beach had her bookstore between the great wars but then I hadn't realized that her shop had been shut down and Whitman's started out under a different name. I ordered her book so I could read about the expats but valued reading about the Beats and the 60s/70s from the viewpoint of Shakespeare and Company. It was sad to read about it's decline into the 90s but it ends with Sylvia Whitman taking over and cleaning up, I'm excited to visit the store again and see what has remained the same and evolved too.
December 11, 2022
Very impressive to a auniq bookstore policy and activities .
الكتاب بمثابة أرشيف تضمنه صور بقالب تحرير فني فاتن، لنشأة المكتبة وتسميتها والأحداث الفارقة التي عايشتها ومع أسماء لامعة خلدها الأدب لاحقا .
ولا تختلف روح المكتبة الحاليا مع تاريخ أول مكتبة لاصدارات ناطقة باللغة الانجليزية أقامتها السيدة سيلفيا بيتش (1919-1941)، حيث جذبتها ومالك المكتبة الأخرى السيد جورج ويتمان حياة البوهيميا في فرنسا، حيث حرية القلم والعلاقات بلا قيود ولا عقاب .
الكتاب غير مترجم للعربية ومتوفر بمكتبة شكسبير أند كومباني، فرنسا .
.
الكتاب بمثابة أرشيف تضمنه صور بقالب تحرير فني فاتن، لنشأة المكتبة وتسميتها والأحداث الفارقة التي عايشتها ومع أسماء لامعة خلدها الأدب لاحقا .
ولا تختلف روح المكتبة الحاليا مع تاريخ أول مكتبة لاصدارات ناطقة باللغة الانجليزية أقامتها السيدة سيلفيا بيتش (1919-1941)، حيث جذبتها ومالك المكتبة الأخرى السيد جورج ويتمان حياة البوهيميا في فرنسا، حيث حرية القلم والعلاقات بلا قيود ولا عقاب .
الكتاب غير مترجم للعربية ومتوفر بمكتبة شكسبير أند كومباني، فرنسا .
.
May 28, 2024
If you have a love of bookshops and books then this is a "must read"! I have not had the pleasure of visiting this bookshop in person, but when you read this book you will feel like you are part of the Shakespeare and Company "family". What a wonderful tribute to a man's vision of having good literature available to everyone and a kindness towards strangers who are struggling to find their way.
When I finally do get to visit, I know I will feel right at home from the minute I enter the door.
When I finally do get to visit, I know I will feel right at home from the minute I enter the door.
December 29, 2021
This book was special to me if just for the experience of reliving the history of such a place. All of the characters that assemble throughout the book and their stories and all the stories of people who found a reason to STAY at this bookstore just to experience the moment had me looking forward to reading it every day....
July 22, 2021
This thorough and fascinating history of the world-renown Paris bookstore, Shakespeare and Company, features news stories, letters, diary entries, personal reflections, and lots of photos highlighting each decade from the 1920s to the present. The book provides insight into the evolution of the shop and its caretakers, as well as the parade of literary customers from Hemingway to Dave Eggers. If you've had the pleasure of visiting, you'll learn so much more about where you've been, and if you haven't been, you'll want to go.
June 10, 2023
I started this book months ago but couldn’t finished it at fist because I was strangely moved by it. (to such an extent that I almost cried multiple times.)
Loved everything about it.
Loved everything about it.
August 4, 2024
I love this shop, please take me back
November 15, 2025
An absolute dream of a book!! I felt like I was in the bookstore as an honorary Tumbleweed ❤️📚
February 27, 2017
A book and a monument that you can wander through just as if you were in a bookstore itself.
This is a truly wonderful tribute to and history of the Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris. It includes a mini-graphic novel that tells the story of Sylvia Beach's original Paris book store from the 1920's-1930's which was closed due to the German occupation of WWII and never reopened. It tells the story of George Whitman's youth through his diary entries and then his founding of his own store called Mistral Books in Paris in 1951 and how he inherited the Shakespeare and Company name from Sylvia Beach herself. The rest of the history is divided up into chapters by decade where the entries include photographs, archival tumbleweed (Whitman's petname for overnight guests) biographies, present day tumbleweed memories, newspaper clippings, etc. with an overall through-text (in oversize font to distinguish it from the rest) by editor Krista Halverson and a concluding section by Sylvia Whitman. Whitman's daughter Sylvia took over the store in 2005 and has modernized it into the 21st century with an online presence that will hopefully ensure its survival for times to come.
This is a truly wonderful tribute to and history of the Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris. It includes a mini-graphic novel that tells the story of Sylvia Beach's original Paris book store from the 1920's-1930's which was closed due to the German occupation of WWII and never reopened. It tells the story of George Whitman's youth through his diary entries and then his founding of his own store called Mistral Books in Paris in 1951 and how he inherited the Shakespeare and Company name from Sylvia Beach herself. The rest of the history is divided up into chapters by decade where the entries include photographs, archival tumbleweed (Whitman's petname for overnight guests) biographies, present day tumbleweed memories, newspaper clippings, etc. with an overall through-text (in oversize font to distinguish it from the rest) by editor Krista Halverson and a concluding section by Sylvia Whitman. Whitman's daughter Sylvia took over the store in 2005 and has modernized it into the 21st century with an online presence that will hopefully ensure its survival for times to come.
November 13, 2016
Well, that settles it. I must visit this masterpiece.
To anyone who loves bookshops, loves books, or loves curiosities, please pick this up this gem. Chockful of pictures, poetry, newspaper clippings, comics, and short bios written by guests of the store (appropriately-dubbed "Tumbleweeds"), this reads more like a scrapbook than a history book. Shakespeare and Company has an extensive history, stretching over a century, the helm passing from Sylvia Beach to George Whitman to Sylvia Whitman, courting the Lost Generation as well as the Beatniks. This is not merely a store, but a destination for lost travelers. Sound bohemian? Definitely. And that's a compliment.
To anyone who loves bookshops, loves books, or loves curiosities, please pick this up this gem. Chockful of pictures, poetry, newspaper clippings, comics, and short bios written by guests of the store (appropriately-dubbed "Tumbleweeds"), this reads more like a scrapbook than a history book. Shakespeare and Company has an extensive history, stretching over a century, the helm passing from Sylvia Beach to George Whitman to Sylvia Whitman, courting the Lost Generation as well as the Beatniks. This is not merely a store, but a destination for lost travelers. Sound bohemian? Definitely. And that's a compliment.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews