Read No
Length 392
Quick Review A quick easy read that will pull at your heartstrings while providing hope for the future in a formulaic way.
The Little Paris Bookshop is a quick read full of romance, sorrow, and hope. Falling in line with a Sparksian – Nicholas Sparks – formula of how romance transpires, Nina George does provide the reader with some highly poignant moments, quotable phrases, and a creative idea.
A middle-aged bookseller pines after a love lost for two decades. Ignoring the world around him, he is the owner and curator of the Book Apothecary or book barge where people in need go to have their souls cleansed through books they may not want but desperately need. The idea of a Book Apothecary or book barge was really the only interesting aspect to capture my attention in this novel.
The narrator waffles between feminist and woman blaming by saying men do not deserve women while also blaming women for stringing men on. I get it you’re heart broken, but make up your damn mind. Are we better than you? Or do we make a game out of breaking hearts?
The writing was adequate to fit the story. It lacked nuance or anything particularly special. There were moments of slight mystery and quick answers. If you’ve ever read a book with a basic storyline, the ending screams itself from page 15.
I doubt this book will last the tests of time, but it does suffice as a lovely beach read. It was a New York Times Bestseller and an International Best Seller, so it does have its appeal. I would never read it again, but, like I said, it is a great read if you don’t want to soul search, deep think. I would put this under the category of ‘mindless read.’
Memorable Quotes
“The bookseller could not imagine what might be more practical than a book.”
“It’s amazing how unimpressed people are by being loved when it doesn’t fit in with their plans”
“Damn church! Heaps misery on any who haven’t already given up hope.”
“Personally, I don’t believe that any question is too big; you simply have to tailor the answer.”
Title: The Little Paris Bookshop
Author: Nina George
Translator: Simon Pare
Publisher Broadway Books
Copyright: 2015
ISBN: 9780553418798