The Little Paris Bookshop

by Nina George

[Lianne]

I was approved an ARC of this book by the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This review was originally posted at eclectictales.com: http://www.eclectictales.com/blog/2015/09/23/review-the-little-paris-bookshop/

I really liked the premise of the novel, the concept of a literary apothecary, his ship being a barge, and Perdu having a knack for prescribing particular novels based on what he’s assessed of the client and his/her life experiences, what they are going through, etc. I loved the little quotes about books and reading and the feelings associated with it. At times it reminded me of The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry and The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry with its quaintness, Perdu’s journey, and the nature of the shop.

However, from the start I did feel like something was off about the novel, like the events of the novel was feeling rather distant to me for some reason. Once Perdu found Manon’s letter and set off on his journey down the Seine, I lost all interest in the story: I felt so disconnected from the characters and what they hoped to achieve with their journey. It also moved away from the initial premise that I liked so much at the start of the novel, about books and the concept of his shop, and focused more on past events in the character’s life that didn’t compel me as much as I thought it would.

I’m not sure how I got through the book–I guess just to see if things would change as I went along–but The Little Paris Bookshop was not what I expected and ultimately was a rather disappointing read for me. Perhaps not my cup of tea but other readers may enjoy this novel.