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Be not inhospitable
to strangers
Lest they be angels
in disguise.
-FROM OVER A DOORWAY W ITHIN
SHAKESPEARE & CO., PARIS, FRANCE
/SL
Llama Spit
By AJ Coyne
T lD I
The first Shakespeare & Company Bookshop
opened in Paris in November of 1919. In it Sylvia Beach
gave the literary world a place to come together - it was
frequented by the “greats” such as Ernest Hemingway,
TS Eliot, Gertrude Stein and so many more. It was
where the controversial novel Ulysses by James Joyce
was published and distributed. It was a haven to
countless writers, a place where they were encouraged
and challenged to read and create brilliance.
What Sylvia Beach created, George Whitman
keeps alive in his own Shakespeare & Co. Bookshop.
Last m onth I had the privilege of going to Paris, and one
of the most amazing places I saw in the week I was there,
was this small bookstore in the shadow of the Notre
Dame. Upon entering I realized that I would never quite
be the same - and would never be able to sufficiently
describe the magic of Shakespeare & Co. to anyone who
had never had the honor of walking through its doors for
the first time. I had come into a space that instantly felt
like home. People were celebrating words and minds
were being challenged, intelligent people were having
ridiculous and brilliant conversations about nothing and
everything. Here anyone is welcome to contribute and
strangers are considered angels in disguise. I found that
the employees were actually people just passing through
in need of a place to sleep; some had been there for years
and some for days; but ail had one thing in common and
that is the greatest respect for George and what he has
kept alive in Shakespeare & Co.
I wandered this haven for hours, laughing in
delight at the treasures found in every corner. The store
is a maze of wonderment with every inch being filled
with literary jewels. These jewels can be found not only
in the shape of a book but also in pictures pinned to the
wall, newspaper clippings carelessly taped to the door
frames, a quote written below the ceiling, a wishing well
filled with coins or an alcove beneath the stairs. The
books are stored in some of the most beautiful and
elaborate pieces of furniture and also in makeshift
bookshelves propped up against whatever space happens
not to be in use that day. I could have spent years in this
space and surely never seen all that was there, but what I
did see in my limited time told me so much. I found a
place of worship where you come and celebrate life and
literature.
The most magnificent part of my experience was
found up a steep flight of stairs in the “Sylvia Beach
Memorial Library". Sylvia sold books but also used her
store as a lending library, and although in this day and
age it is more difficult to lend books, especially in a
tourist city, George has kept Sylvia’s dream alive in what
I would call a reading library. You aren’t able to take the
books out of the store but you are more than welcome to
stay as long as you like and come back as often as you
like. As well as the rest of the building, the library is
covered with books, but unlike downstairs you will also
find beds tucked away in every corner. It is here where
you can curl up with a book or just curl up and take a
nap. There was really nothing I wanted to do more than
lie down in that space surrounded by glorious writing
and think about all who had been there before me. So
with Hemingway in hand I found my small comer and
curled up not to read, but to breathe; and it was the best
nap I have ever had. I awoke with a smile on my face
knowing that I would spend many more hours in my new
found haven - if not in person than at least in my head.
It is easy for me to understand how someone could come
for a book and stay for a lifetime.
2001
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The Cannon Beach Gallery
opens its 2001 season
with a show featuring local artist
Kay ‘Aya.
H er presentation will focus on still life images,
rendered in pastel, and incorporating calligraphy.
Also featured will be a juried show, open to all artists.
Submissions for work to be juried may be made on
Thursday, Feb. 15th, 9:30am - 4:30pm
A rtists may subm it up to three
exhibit-ready pieces in any m edium,
com pleted w itnin the last two years.
The show opens with a reception
Okay, it is beginning, the annual disparity o f
baseball Never mind that the “Super" Bowl is
boring, and that basketball no longer has a
Superstar, and baseball has a quarter-billion dollar
man Never mind that people who call baseball
boring not only play golf, but watch it on television
Never mind that the Cubs have the same record as
any team on opening day It begins Go Cubbies’
(503) 436-0744
Tracy Erfling N.D.
Naturopathic Physician
<
Treating Women
& Their Families
/
1010 Duane • Astoria, Oregon 97103
Phone: 503-325-9194 • Email: erflingndt^hotmail.com
»
4
UPPER LEFT EDGE FEBRUARY 2.004
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