Francoise Frenkel, the author of A Bookshop in Berlin, opened a French bookstore in Berlin in 1921 when she noticed that other bookstores and newsstands did not carry any French books, magazines, or newspapers. In July 1939, Frenkel fled to Paris. Her book details her life and her bookstore as well as her harrowing experiences from 1939 - 1943.
A Bookshop in Berlin was originally titled No Place to Lay One's Head and it was quietly published in 1945. Then it disappeared until a copy was found in an attic sixty years later in 2005. It was translated and published in English in 2017.
Frenkel was born in Poland. Her husband was rounded up in Paris in 1942 and died a short time later in Auschwitz. There is a chronology at the back of the book which is very helpful. There is also a Dossier section which provides photographs of documents and buildings.
Some of the memorable passages from the book include:
* Horror made itself at home in everyday life.
* The rhythm of war accelerated at an ever-increasing rate.
* Was it better to die in your home or suffocate in a cellar?
* Everybody had lost their drive, their enthusiasm for life.
* We would fall into gloomy indifference, an all-consuming inertia.
* It was the lack of anything to do that weighed most heavily, draining every ounce of energy and any resistance.
* The instinct of self-preservation won out.
* Police were on the hunt, displaying inexhaustible levels of skill and energy.
* Some deep sadistic urge must lie hidden in every man, waiting to be exposed when the opportunity arises.
Susan Orlean's son had a school assignment to interview a city employee. He chose to interview a librarian. Susan and her son visited a librarian at tSusan Orlean's son had a school assignment to interview a city employee. He chose to interview a librarian. Susan and her son visited a librarian at the Studio City library, a library in the Los Angeles Public Library system. This encounter led to Orlean spending three years researching and two years writing The Library Book.
I listened to The Library Book on audiobook and I was mesmerized from the first sentence. It is narrated superbly by Susan Orlean. I love it when an author narrates their own work.
In April 1986, the fire alarm went off in the Central Library, one of the 73 libraries in the Los Angeles Public Library system. Initially most employees and library patrons thought it was a fluke since the alarm frequently went off. Very few libraries had fire sprinklers because water could cause substantial damage to books.
The fire lasted seven hours and 65 fire departments were called to the scene. The fire was so hot that the flames were translucent. Fifty firefighters were hospitalized with injuries and/or smoke inhalation. Firefighters described it as the bowels of hell. It was the largest library fire ever in the United States.
The Library Book is more than a book about the fire and the arrest of Harry Peak as the suspected arsonist. The book is a love letter to libraries, librarians, readers, and books. Libraries have been such a significant part of my life from a very young age. This book spoke to my heart and my soul.
This is my first Susan Orlean book. I read that her nonfiction book, The Orchid Thief, resulted in Meryl Streep winning a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nomination for Streep's portrayal of Susan Orlean. I have added The Orchid Thief to my TBR.
My first Schwalbe book was The End of Your Life Book Club. About a week ago, I read Books for Living. Both of these Schwalbe books focus on books that have had an impact on him, his mother, and others.
We Should Not Be Friends: The Story of a Friendship is a memoir about a friendship between Schwalbe and Maxey. The two of them met in college and had a 40+ year friendship. There are periods of time where they don't speak to each other that starts out as days, then weeks, and then years because life gets hectic and friendship gets put on the back burner.
Then they reconnect, particularly when there are health situations, divorce, and career changes. Throughout their journey together, their friendship experiences bumps, bruises and misunderstandings as well as high points.
The book starts with Schwalbe's concern that he doesn't have a book to read on a plane ride and he's anxiously trying to find a bookstore in the airport while his name is being called on the overhead speaker to quickly get to the gate because the plane is departing. I can relate to this story! I typically travel with several hard copy and electronic books as well as audiobooks. If, for some reason, I don't have any reading material with me, I feel I can't board the plane until I rectify the situation.
Schwalbe shared his perspective on the children's books about Stuart Little and it made me want to reread Stuart Little. Books he mentioned that I haven't read but now want to include The Little Prince and Journey Around My Room.
I highly recommend this book for readers, authors, and librarians, ...more
My review of The Lost Bookshop is definitely an outlier so I encourage readers to read the many reviews. Most reviews are positive.
I listened to it onMy review of The Lost Bookshop is definitely an outlier so I encourage readers to read the many reviews. Most reviews are positive.
I listened to it on audiobook, and it never captivated me. I kept trying but the pace seemed slow, the characters weren't interesting, and I couldn't keep going. It has been retired to the lost bookshop. ...more
"We read books to find out who we are." Ursula K. Le Guin.
While in the UK, I purchased A Bookshop of One’s Own. Jane Cholmeley and her partner, Sue Bu"We read books to find out who we are." Ursula K. Le Guin.
While in the UK, I purchased A Bookshop of One’s Own. Jane Cholmeley and her partner, Sue Butterworth, opened a bookstore focused on women and lesbians. The bookstore was called Silver Moon, and it was located at 68 Charring Cross Road in London. It opened in 1984 and closed in 2001.
A Bookshop of One’s Own is a love letter to Silver Moon, feminists, thinkers, women, writers, authors, publishers, and their customers. The bookshop opened against a backdrop of misogyny and homophobia in Britain.
This book captured my soul because my BHAG (Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal) is to own a bookstore. I was able to live vicariously with Jane and Sue within this book.
Favorite passages include:
* The power of women to change the narrative when they hold the pen.
* Bookshops are always places of power.
* At the time, we didn't think much about legacy; we were more concerned with survival and laughter.
* It was a place of total involvement: heart, soul, and brain.
* Books became my refuge.
* A woman's bookshop could link writers to readers and get our voices heard.
* We combined the mundane with the magnificent.
* Visibility is politics in action.
* Author Rebecca West: I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat.
I wish I had known about Silver Moon and been able to visit it when it was opened. Other women owned independent bookstores that I have visited include:
1. Changing Hands (Tempe and Phoenix, AZ): Originally founded in 1974 with Gayle Shanks, Tom Broderson, and Bob Sommer. Gayle Shanks is now the sole owner.
2. Tattered Cover (Denver, CO): Purchased in 1974 by Joyce Meskis. In 2000, a warrant was served to provide a reader's purchasing habits. Meskis refused based on the First Amendment. She took it all the way to the Colorado Supreme Court where she won. In 2024, Tattered Cover was sold to Barnes and Noble.
The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading is a treasure trove of interviews with booksellers and librarians. They are the magic in this world. They are problem solvers and help people and children find the books they are looking for. Sometimes customers ask for "that book with the blue cover" or "something my ten-year-old son would like" or even more obscure questions. Booksellers and librarians literally glow when they hear back from customers that the books that were recommended to them were perfect.
I dream of working in or possibly owning a bookstore at some point in my life. This book helped me understand that many employees at bookstores have been there a long time because they love working there so much. One of these days, perhaps my dream will become a reality!
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