The Little Paris Bookshop

Nina George’s romance novel The Little Paris Bookshop was originally published in German in 2013 and was translated to English by Simon Pare in 2015. The story follows Jean Perdu, a bookseller, as he travels from Paris to Avignon on his floating bookstore, the Literary Apothecary. Perdu leaves Paris on a whim after receiving heartbreaking news about the death of his former lover. Perdu is joined in his travels by Max Jordan, a bestselling author with writer’s block, and a romantic Italian named Salvatore Cuneo. Perdu and his companions explore the depths of love and loss on their way to the South of France, where Perdu hopes to finally find closure for his grief. The novel explores themes of The Healing Power of Literature, The Impact of Loss and Grief, and The Beauty and Significance of Human Connection.

This guide refers to the American paperback edition of the text, translation by Simon Pare, published by Broadway books in 2015.

Plot Summary

Jean Perdu lives in Paris in the building at 27 Rue Montagnard. As the novel opens, a new resident is moving in to the building. Catherine is going through a nasty divorce and does not have many belongings. The other residents of 27 Rue Montagnard encourage Perdu to gift Catherine with a table and chair. To do so, Perdu must unlock the “Lavender Room,” the section of his apartment that he has walled off behind a bookcase since Manon left him 21 years ago.

Perdu goes into the Lavender Room to fetch the table and chair, which he leaves in the call for Catherine. He hears her crying in her apartment and offers to bring her a book to help her in her sorrow. Unlocking the Lavender Room has an effect on Perdu, making him feel exposed and emotional the whole next day while he’s at work. His gifting the table to Catherine also sets off another chain of events; she finds a letter from Manon in the table drawer. This letter, sent by Manon after she left Perdu, was never opened. After Catherine returns the letter to Perdu, he opens it to find that Manon knew that she was dying when she left him; she broke up with him to try to spare his feelings. She regretted the decision soon after, and wrote to ask him to come see her before she died. He is distraught at the thought that she died waiting for him to come.

Perdu owns a bookstore, which he built on a river barge on the Seine River. His store is called the Literary Apothecary because he thinks of himself as a pharmacist, prescribing the books that people need for their emotional well-being. The day after giving the table to Catherine, Perdu refuses to sell a copy of the book Night to a customer, because he doesn’t think it will be a good fit for her. The book was written by Perdu’s young neighbor, Max Jordan. Max overhears Perdu refusing to sell his book, so Perdu explains his philosophy of books as medicine. Later that day, the customer who had wanted to buy Night returns, asking Perdu to for his reading recommendations. He is happy to oblige.

Perdu visits with his father—a weekly habit—and delivers books to various people around the neighborhood. Then, he goes over to Catherine’s apartment for dinner. They have immediate chemistry; Perdu feels safe and comfortable with her. They hold each other, but don’t kiss. It is in Catherine’s apartment that Perdu reads Manon’s letter.

The next day, aboard the book barge, Perdu makes a snap decision and unties the boat from the quay. Just as he is setting out onto the river, Max comes running. Max leaps aboard, dropping most of his belongings into the water. Perdu thinks that he’ll send Max away at the first opportunity, but the two instead become fast friends and share a long journey together.

The novel is interspersed with excerpts from Manon’s travel diary. The first excerpt is from July of 1986, when she meets Perdu for the first time on a train from Avignon to Paris. Manon, whose family are winemakers in the South of France, is heading to Paris to spend a few months before getting married to her fiancé, Luc.

Perdu enjoys being on the river, feeling more alive than he has in years. As they head downriver, Perdu relives memories of his romance with Manon. He recalls vacations they took together and conversations they had about her upcoming marriage. He remembers Manon explaining that she loves and wants relationships with both men, that she plans to marry Luc and also continue to see Perdu.

Max and Perdu don’t have any cell phones or credit cards, because they left without a plan. They are pulled over by a police officer, who takes their last bits of change to pay for a boating license. Max tells Perdu that he has writer’s block, and that he avoids fans and the press because he doesn’t want them to ask what he’s working on. Perdu begins to feel strong fatherly affection for Max, a dynamic that continues to develop throughout the novel.

Docked at their first marina, Perdu and Max fail to find a restaurant that is willing to trade books for food. At Max’s urging, they introduce themselves to three women aboard a boat called Baloo. The women invite them to dinner. Over the next few days, Perdu sends postcards to Catherine and continues the process of slowly re-opening himself to life, with the help of Max and their adventure on the river.

Max and Perdu decide to pay a visit to a famous American author, P.D. Olson, whom Perdu thinks might be the author of Southern Lights. Southern Lights is Perdu’s favorite book, and it was written under a pen name. Olson tells them he is not the author of the book but takes them to a tango club where they meet Salvatore Cuneo. When the locals chase them out of town, Cuneo joins Max and Perdu aboard the Literary Apothecary.

Cuneo is a wonderful cook and a hopeless romantic, searching for a woman he spent one night with many years ago. He later reveals that he found the woman already, and that she rejected him after hardly remembering who he was. Still, Cuneo continues his wandering life on the river.

In another excerpt from Manon’s travel diary, she is heading home to Bonnieux to marry Luc. She describes her love for both men and her wish that she could be everywhere at once.

The men sell books at each stop to pay for their way down the canal system. They visit some friends of Cuneo’s and, while they’re there, Perdu reveals that Manon is dead; his friends did not know they were traveling to see her grave. This revelation, and Cuneo’s revelation about already having found his lost love, brings the men closer together.

They decide to stop in Cuisery, another town where the author of Southern Lights might live. On their way, they see a woman leap into the water during a fierce storm. That woman, Samy, turns out to be the head of the Cuisery business guild and also the author of Southern Lights. She joins them aboard the boat, and she and Cuneo begin a romance.

In the third excerpt from Manon’s travel diary, she describes watching Perdu sleep on the night before she leaves him. She alludes to “the child,” the first hint readers receive that she is pregnant.

Perdu gives his boat to Samy and Cuneo so that he and Max can journey away from the river toward their final destination of Manon’s family home. They get lost driving through the countryside, and though they don’t know it, they meet Manon and Luc’s daughter Victoria, whom they ask for directions. Max and Perdu rent a room near Manon’s family home, but Perdu isn’t ready to face Luc yet or see Manon’s grave; he realizes that he still needs time to heal. Leaving Max to write and enjoy the beautiful countryside, Perdu sets out on his own.

Perdu ends up in the coastal town of Sanary-sur-Mer, where he spends the entire summer. He swims in the ocean, works in a bookshop, and gives himself quiet time to mourn. Once he feels ready, he invites Catherine to come and join him. They spend a romantic month together before heading back to meet Max and to finally visit Manon’s home. In the meantime, Max has fallen in love with Victoria.

Perdu meets Luc, who gives him Manon’s travel diary. Perdu visits Manon’s grave and finally feels hopeful for the future; his journey has helped him make room in his heart for sorrow for Manon and for new loves.

The epilogue describes Perdu and Catherine’s new life together; they buy a house in the countryside. Max and Victoria marry, and Max begins writing children’s books. Each Christmas, Perdu and Catherine join Luc’s family to celebrate the holidays and remember Manon.