Oldest English Bookshop in Europe
And I’m back from my summer escapade to Brazil. While I wrap my head around the fact that I’ve finally been to South America, I’d like to share a mini-adventure I had back in my Host city.
I unknowingly bought two new books in the oldest English bookstore in Europe (the continent), est. 1801:
Librairie Galignani
224 Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris
Open from Monday - Saturday from 10:00 to 19:00
Closed on Sundays
Metro line 1, Stop at Concorde
“Librairie Galignani was founded by Giovanni Antonio Galignani in 1800 as a circulating library and bookshop in Paris, France. Galignani came from a family of printers in Italy, dating back as far as Simone Galignani of the sixteenth century. Galignani left his native Italy in the late eighteenth century, and in England he met the daughter of an English printer, who would become his wife. They had three children, and in 1800 the family relocated to France, where the bookshop began life as Parsons and Galignani. It is considered to be the oldest English language bookshop in mainland Europe, and therefore played an integral role in not only the relationship between foreign and native culture in France, but also the publishing laws both home and away. It quickly became a city favourite, providing international literature and daily newspapers from England which enabled expatriates to keep up to date with current affairs back home. An arrivals book in the library allowed visitors to see who else, particularly distinguished guests, was currently staying in the city.”
Yesterday, I felt like going to a bookstore after finishing two books (one I bought at the airport to pass time, another I secured through my ebook reader). I had no idea what to read. Up until the last minute before heading out the door, I almost told B no.
He found two English bookstores, though I could've settled for an ordinary, conglomerate (French) bookstore, really. I promised myself to read one book in the language I understand (Filipino, English, French, why not Portuguese), but I have only been reading English books.
B took me to Concorde where there were two English bookstores, no Parisians and a lot of tourists. Two things came to my mind: it's true that only tourists fill the streets of Paris in August, which is why I don't go to the city centre. Bonus: I can steal my own tourist pictures because I can blend in.
We ended up in Galignani - unknowingly to me - the first English bookstore on the continent and bought one book in French and one in English.
🇫🇷 Magellan is written in German by Austrian writer, Stefan Zweig (author recommended by B), translated to French about a Portuguese sailor who set sail around the world under the Spanish crown.
🇬🇧 The Trouble with Happiness is a Danish book translated into English that talks about mundane scenes of life in search of happiness from a Scandinavian perspective.
Ultimately, this visit to the bookstore was an effort to:
move and start the healing process of my sprain
enjoy the sun
purge Brasil out of my system and restart discovering the Host city once again
relive my old habits of hanging out in bookstores, in search of my "place to be" (like Fullybooked in PH)
somehow forget the frustration of not being able to purchase any Portuguese books in this awesome Brazilian bookstore while I was in Minas
I'd say mission accomplished, plus bonuses 🌟
Realization: why didn't I think about borrowing books from the city library? I'd say this is also some sort of retail therapy.