A review by steviec
Time Was Soft There: A Paris Sojourn at Shakespeare & Co. by Jeremy Mercer

4.0

I really enjoyed this. Shakespeare and Co. has been on my radar for a while, and is definitely on my bucket list. Jeremy Mercer captures the quirkiness and offbeat appeal of the renown establishment (and the bohemian city in which it resides) with wonderful dexterity. Sometimes you need to get out and have an adventure to grow up, and this is one of those times. I thought Mercer was autobiographical without being narcissistic, capturing the stories and encounters of expatriation with an interesting voice. At times it was a little typical, a view of Paris from the eye of a romantic, but I think he adequately explained the abrasive aspects of the transient life.

Ultimately I think it did what every good travel memoir does; it reminds the reader that the world is not as scary as we would believe, and interesting people and things exist beyond our suburban world if we would only get the courage to go look.