11.26.08

Where Time is Soft

Posted in Life Betwixt Book Covers at 2:38 am by Miracle ♪♫

“I believed in love. I believed in bookstore miracles. Anything could happen.”
Jeremy Mercer, from Time Was Soft There (A Paris Sojourn at Shakespeare & Co.)

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A name that embraced the last one hundred years of great literary figures but probably holds the entire literary history in its shelves, this magical world of literature, this legend, once a haven for radical socialists, living quarters to significant bohemians, every serious bookworm’s dream destination, the place to pursue literary dreams, but only known to some of us as the bookstore where Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy found each other again: Shakespeare & Co.

The bookstore at 37 rue de la Bucherie, Paris, France, is basically what Time Was Soft There is all about, its rich annals, its peculiar owner and furthermore peculiar inhabitants, and journalist Jeremy Mercer’s firsthand experiences with all of these and so much more. This is a book any writer or bookworm would relish.

The author’s note summarizes that “What follows is the story of how I found refuge at a peculiar old bookstore in Paris and the remarkable events that occurred there during my stay. In writing a memoir such as this, the truth becomes liquid. The true volume of all that brought me to France and all that happened at this bookstore would require a far greater capacity than these pages allow. Thus, the events have been distilled and condensed and then distilled again. Minor liberties have been taken with chronology… Otherwise, this is as true a story as can be told at this time.”

Needless to declare, I enjoyed reading this book very much. Not only did it present Parisian activity in all its glory where the author was awed by its consistent beauty, but it is also a truthful depiction of a writer’s dazzling yet dark existence, and a vivid portrait of a booklover’s extraordinary devotion to literature and life.

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“People all tell me they work too much, that they need to make more money…
What’s the point? Why not live on as little as possible and then spend your time with your family or reading Tolstoy or running a bookstore?”
George Whitman, owner of Shakespeare & Co.

This quote from George Whitman sums up a rather extensive fraction of my family’s philosophy. In spite of the fact that Shakespeare & Co. teemed with eccentricities, this book also reminded me that life need not be so complicated. (With the exception of my “lavish” dreams, of course. Haha)

Switching to daydreaming mode, I am even more enamoured to the idea of opening a bookstore after reading Jeremy Mercer’s memoir. Although it is not only I who fancies the undertaking of a library that also happens to be a hummock for musicians, writers, and all sorts of artists, and where profit is not its main purpose, what makes my concept for a bookstore different will not be the free espresso nor complimentary food, and it will not be the sort of meeting place for bohemians to unleash their immoralities, nor will it be where lost intellectuals enter and come out even more lost. It should be a warm place where God’s light shines, where His Word is shared, where its nooks are filled with not only mountains of books and walls of paintings but of love, hope, joy, and music… and I know it would be difficult to venture on this alone. Perhaps it will be realized with my future husband?

Switching back to reality mode and scrolling back up…“A library with free espresso… complimentary food… artists… musicians… paintings… music… love… joy… where God’s Word is shared…” I was suddenly made aware that I had been unconsciously describing my surroundings, my own home – but only with imagined bigger spaces and a “less-distressed” appearance. This environment is what my parents have already built except that it is not exactly a bookstore but a library in its own way. Blame it on our love for books, and our varying ideas of organization and bookish preferences, what might seem as an odd practice concerning our books is how each member of our family have our own separate shelves. Papa’s shelf in his studio serves as the library’s art section, Mama’s music room holds the inspirational and “motherly” books, Dandi’s stacks of books in his bedroom will attend to the very masculine literary taste, Misha’s own shelf make for the Children’s section, and there’s my little personal library – a hodgepodge of genres.

I must confess about my weakness for having too luxurious dreams - envisioning a bigger library perhaps run by my future husband and I despite what I’ve already been blessed with. But while my dreams wait for me, I will be content with my cozy humble home and my wee library… for in here, where I am surrounded by books, love, music, and the aroma of espresso, time is soft, too.

I believe in love. I believe in bookstore miracles. Anything could happen. =)

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(Note for Franz: These are the photos I promised. Look at what you’re missing. =P)

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