Reviews with content warning for Suicide - The Paris Bookseller

I liked a lot of this but it also dragged on and on and took me forever to finish.
I would recommend it though, if you're looking for a descrete queer book! It doesn't say anything on the blurb and is very queer on the inside.

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claireeshelby's review against another edition

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informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

I greatly enjoyed the literary references and the book’s strong basis in reality while retaining its sense of fictional wonder. The plot was repetitive at times, but the repetition highlighted the mundanity of life, bookmarked by more inspiring, momentous events. Overall a wanderlust-inducing read that definitely inspired me to pick up more classics.

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josieruby1's review against another edition

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informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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flo_llot's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

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authorbrittanibee's review against another edition

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informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.0

I was originally drawn to this historical fiction piece because of the main protagonist, Sylvia Beach. I wanted to learn more about her and how she came to build such a notable bookshop in Paris as well as fight against American censorship by publishing Ulysses during the time of Prohibition. Unfortunately, I found that I wasn’t able to find the rhythm of this story until the final third of the novel. There was something about the cadence in which events were shared that didn’t resonate with me, at times outright disorienting me. The vast amount of time that the novel spanned was incredibly jarring, but maybe that is just me. I do find that I enjoy really delving deep into minute details that perhaps others don’t find as intriguing.

Regardless, I still very much enjoyed the fictionalization of Sylvia Beach’s life, and was incredibly intrigued to learn in the author’s note that Sylvia, herself, wrote an autobiography. I think I might have to dive down that rabbit hole in the future and see the time period in which she operated Shakespeare and Company through her own eyes.

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gracescanlon's review against another edition

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lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

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terrificarno's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

was actually quite surprised by how much i ended up liking this book! in the beginning i had my gripes with the author’s writing (felt a bit too descriptive/flat), but once james joyce entered the scene it definitely became a very entertaining and informative read. would recommend it to anyone who’s hungry for a good fictionalised account of the paris of the twenties!

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