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gg1213's review against another edition
3.0
There isn't too much to say about the book. It's a memoir that briefly recounts Beach's childhood and how she ended up opening an American bookshop in Paris- then continuing in much more detail her work with James Joyce and her relationships with countless other writers/publishers of the era. It was a relatively slow read, because of all the detail and the names- but I did enjoy it. Obviously, this isn't going to be a book for everyone. If you enjoy literary history, or literature from the 1920s, then I think you'll enjoy this more. Considering the price of my edition and the, what seems to be, less than frequent publishing of the book, I definitely say that if you have a chance to read it- go ahead, but it isn't necessarily worth spending a lot of money on if you aren't completely fascinated by the subject.
areyouwithcaz's review against another edition
4.0
An extra star for Beach’s wonderful description of people and character. That generation really knew the concept of “show don’t tell” writing. It’s fantastic. The history of Shakespeare and Co is compelling. But I feel like the actual history was only about five of the chapters and the rest was all about James Joyce. I know the success of the shop was apparently tied largely to his success and lack thereof. But what about all the other writers? I so want to hear more of them! I wish Sylvia had told their stories, but how could she know how much more popular they’d all become by today.
outrageouslymoonpie's review against another edition
5.0
Credevo fosse una storia d'amore e mi sono trovata davanti un memoir. Racconta la storia di una delle librerie più famose di Parigi, la storia di una libreria che nei progetti della sua proprietaria doveva essere francese e in centro a NEw York.
LA storia della Shakespeare and Company sulla riva della Senna, in rue de l'Odeon, si intreccia con quella di decine di autori di lingua inglese, primo fra tutti James Joyce, di cui Sylvia sarà la prima editrice di Ulysses, il romanzo che nessuno voleva pubblicare perchè considerato osceno.
E così, tra un buffo episodio e l'altro, tra un macello combinato da JOyce e l'altro, arriviamo alla fine, in cui la libreria si trova ad affrontare le fatiche del dopo seconda guerra mondiale, abbandonata da tutti quegli autori a cui ha dato una mano a spiccare il volo.
LA storia della Shakespeare and Company sulla riva della Senna, in rue de l'Odeon, si intreccia con quella di decine di autori di lingua inglese, primo fra tutti James Joyce, di cui Sylvia sarà la prima editrice di Ulysses, il romanzo che nessuno voleva pubblicare perchè considerato osceno.
E così, tra un buffo episodio e l'altro, tra un macello combinato da JOyce e l'altro, arriviamo alla fine, in cui la libreria si trova ad affrontare le fatiche del dopo seconda guerra mondiale, abbandonata da tutti quegli autori a cui ha dato una mano a spiccare il volo.
lindseysparks's review against another edition
4.0
I've read so many things about Shakespeare and Company and it was wonderful to finally go there (sort of - it's not the same location), and then to read this book written by the founder, Sylvia Beach. It was nice to get her perspective and read her stories about starting the bookstore, all the writers who came to visit, her adventure publishing Ulysses and WWII. She focuses quite heavily on James Joyce and all of the help she gave him, not just in publishing Ulysses but in supporting his family so he could write. I don't know if he appreciated her enough. I've always wanted to own a bookstore, so I also loved her stories about starting out. There wasn't a lot of detail about WWII, but it's just so sad that she had to close because she didn't want to have to sell to Nazis, and that she ended up in a concentration camp for a little while. She survived, but never re-opened the store. (The one open now was opened later by someone else.) I would love to travel back in time and visit her store in the 20s.
rialowenschuss's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
Dense but a really valuable read
mmcloe's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
I've always loved and admired and tried to fashion myself after Sylvia Beach. What an incredible gift to bring together some of the most colorful and brightest minds of a generation into community with one another.
Also she spent 6 months in an internment camp and just mentions it in a sentence??? Girl are you okay???
Also she spent 6 months in an internment camp and just mentions it in a sentence??? Girl are you okay???