The history of Shakespeare and Company has intrigued me since I first read about it in Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast.  This very special bookshop was one of the first places I visited when I came to Paris for the first time and is still one of my favorite places.  Shakespeare and Company is simply magique! After photographing New York illustrator Molly Crabapple at Shakespeare and Company, I was inspired to share with you the perfect little details of this magical bookshop in the heart of Paris.

Washed away by the Seine & the city, I found myself grounded here, breathing deep and utterly content.  Live this moment.  It is beautiful.  ~ Author unknown

J’adore Anaïs Nin.

In Tropic of Cancer, Henry Miller wrote “In America…you wouldn’t dream of living in a joint like this. Even when I was on the bum I slept in better rooms than this. But here it seems natural—it’s like the books you read.”

Ahhh, Henry & June ~ Anaïs Nin’s story about her relationship with Henry Miller and the love triangle between her, Henry and his wife June ~ one of my favorite books ever!

On a cold windswept street, this was a warm, cheerful place with a big stove in winter, tables and shelves of books, new books in the window, and photographs on the wall of famous writers both dead and living. The photographs all looked like snapshots and even the dead writers looked as though they had really been alive.  ~ Ernest Hemingway, “Shakespeare and Company,” A Moveable Feast

This photo is from a fashion shoot I did for Angela Johnson’s t-shirt ball gown.

This last photo is from my first visit to Shakespeare and Company many years ago.  This is a scan of a black & white film photograph.  I feel so blessed to have captured this shot because the Henry Miller quote is no longer there, it’s been completely worn away.

If you would like to read a little about the history of Shakespeare and Company, you can read my previous post here with  Molly Crabapple’s photo shoot.

xoxo

Juliane