Paris in Our View: Poems Selected by Shakespeare and Company

by Krista Halverson (Editor), David Delannet (Editor), Matteo Pericoli (Illustrator)

Paris in Our View is a collection of fifty-five poems reflecting Shakespeare and Company's perspective on the French capital—a perspective formed both by the books on our shelves and by the readers and writers who pass each day through our doors.

The acclaimed Italian illustrator Matteo Pericoli provides the gorgeous line drawings, which depict the window views of poets who, at one time or another, made their homes in Paris. These include the views of Arthur Rimbaud, Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, Charles Baudelaire, Julio Cortázar, Aimé Césaire, Aja Monet, César Vallejo, Victor Hugo, Natalie Clifford Barney, and Oscar Wilde—as well as those of the Beat Hotel and Shakespeare and Company, whose window onto Notre-Dame cathedral and Hôtel-Dieu is featured on the book's cover.

The selection of poems includes both classic and contemporary poets, such as Carol Ann Duffy, Guillaume Apollinaire, Jacques Prévert, Anne Carson, Charles Bukowski, Gaël Faye, Pablo Neruda, Langston Hughes, Ai Qing, Oscar Wilde, Mahmoud Darwish, Eileen Myles, Yosano Akiko, Rainer Maria Rilke, Rita Dove, Wisława Szymborska, Andrée Chedid, Julio Cortázar, and Charles Baudelaire, among many others.

Genres: Poetry

138 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2023

Reviews

[Adina · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very nice collection of poems. Some of them have just a very slight connection to Paris but nevertheless this book is an interesting read (considering I'm not a fan of poetry).

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

"You can't write a poem for a city that's poetry."

[amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obsessed

[Kozbi BC · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great translations and selection of poems <3

“And, yes, here I knew such aloneness -
At the corner of another street
The dawn yawned
In some trauma I was living in back then
Paris itself a floating dream
A great stone ship adrift
Made of dusk and dawn and darkness”

[ella · Rating 4 out of 5]

shakespeare and co 🫶🏻
poetry 🫶🏻
art 🫶🏻
translation 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun to read a selection of Paris poems, but some of them really minimally involved Paris hahah

[Abbie Luck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having visited Shakespeare and Co and spending two days in Paris, this was a very special read.

[Deion McNair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read after leaving the city, perfectly captures the vibes

[Wanhedaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este libro fue un autoregalo que me hice en mi visita a París y a la librería, y que tiene una selección de poemas sobre la ciudad o inspirados en ella. Es lindo y tiene unas ilustraciones bellísimas de las ventanas de algunas casas que fueron habitadas por Oscar Wilde, Victor Hugo, Córtazar y otros grandes escritores en París. Este libro es, ante todo, un lindo recuerdo :)

[Isabela Martínez Cabrera · Rating 3 out of 5]

No sé si es por la traducción o por la antigüedad, pero la mayoría de esta selección me pareció aburrida. Los dibujos están bellos y puedo rescatar alguna que otra frase poética, que me revoca a mi vida en París.

[Mia Lowry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I miss Paris immensely.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vibey as hell in the right setting

[Yalicel Gabeira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recibí esta selección de poemas como un regalo especial. Me conmovió pensar que era una silenciosa confesión de amor, en la que Paris se convertía en el escenario ideal para el viaje poético de disímiles voces. Disfruté volver una y otra vez a los distintos fragmentos de una ciudad imaginada, recorrer las callejuelas y los rincones de tiempos habitados por otros cuerpos. Las ventanas ilustradas así como las múltiples memorias inherentes a la ciudad me hicieron inventar un millar de texturas para nombrar los amores, la tristeza, la lluvia, los olores, el café, la nostalgia...Si tuviera que rescatar una sola imagen, volvería a ese instante sobre el "El Secreto" de Rodin. Esa hermosa interrogación por el espacio de la caricia y el gesto de dos manos que buscan encontrarse.

[Johannes · Rating 2 out of 5]

For starters, I should acknowledge I'm not much into poetry, and that it was also part of a birthday bundle present from the book shop I was really happy to receive. Shakespeare and Co is an institution in itself, and they excel in creating a beautiful, almost sacred space as to sell other people's books but when it comes to the one they edit... I'm not that thrilled.

The selected material was a bit bland, as others wrote her their connection to Paris was dim in some cases, and the translations leave a lot to be desired in most cases... Now, as for the edition itself, and the drawings they are indeed beautiful but the poems should also be nice, and they are mostly not.

[Silverprince · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tranquillity, a poem should be.
Breathing in clear air
A read takes you.
Here he sees
Paris in Our View.

The above is a simple shot of me making a poem review of this book. I enjoyed almost every poem. As cliche it is, I'm not a poetry person—I think it's cringy and cheesy. Regardless of my prejudices, this compilation of poetry swallowed me whole as you can tell the poets were serious regarding their art. The poems managed to invoke feelings I never thought I had.

I'm not giving a 5 star because I think it lacks some more context, similar to what the introduction did, perhaps at the end or middle of the book

[Shalmalee Nath · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25

An anthology of poems by multiple writers is always going to be a fairly mixed bag so the rating is not a surprise even to myself.
It's true that some of the poems have a very fine thread attaching themselves to Paris... whereas there could've been worthier inclusions. But these qualms are normal about anthologies.
Let's just say if you love poetry - there's enough and more to love here too.
The artwork within - sketching window-views from across the city - also left me very reminiscent.

Ultimately this is a sentimental book to carry off the shelves of Shakespeare and Co. in a nod to centuries of nostalgia about an ambience called Paris.

[Judit · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bought this as a souvenir in the shop itself. It is an almost perfect representation of what it is meant to be: a posh, nostalgic, rosy view of the famous city. Honestly I liked it more than being in Paris.
But as to poetry, only a few were to my 'shoeshine boy' taste (to paraphrase James Baldwin, one of the shop's famous customers).
The physical book itself is 10/10 gorgeous. The illustrations with the view from the windows, like the one featured on the cover are great. If you even slightly like Paris and books this is a great souvenir.

[Miguel Luna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un excelente souvenir tras tu visita a la librería y que pretende tan bien como le es posible resumir la esencia de la ciudad a través de la poesía. Las ilustraciones de Mateo Pericoli lo complementan deliciosamente. Cada poema es una oportunidad de regresar a la ciudad que, contrario a la opinión popular, sigue recibiendo a todo el mundo.

[Emma Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like a 3.5 - some poems left traces on my thoughts and others didn’t make more than a momentary impression. Overall a great compilation of a wide variety of notes on Paris. Anyone who likes poetry or Paris would enjoy.

I also appreciated the number of poems they had translated from other languages, really rounding out the perspectives offered on the city.

[Natalie D.C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful collection of Paris-themed poetry from across centuries and borders featuring lovely illustrations of views from various poets' Parisian homes. My favorites from this collection include "A life beginning" by Mahmoud Darwish, "In Praise of May" by Yosano Akiko, and "Paris for Resident Aliens" by Gaël Faye <3

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lovely souvineir book from Shakespeare and Company. I enjoyed the poetry and the sketches of writer’s Parisian windows. Might not have been the most profound poetry, but they gave me happiness and fond memories of my travels.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mom brought me this book from her trip to Paris. It was wonderful! I loved reading about Paris across the ages and through the eyes of such a variety of poets. Some of the themes of Paris remained the same across the years (delicious, romantic, complex). I was introduced to many poets that I want to read more of next!

[Victoria K]

I started reading this collection in February following a trip with friends!

I am not a poetry person (hence the lack of rating) but this is very sentimental to me for the simple fact that I bought it at kilometre zero.

[Jack Bowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good collection that spans a range of forms and poets. The illustrations are a nice addition and although some links to Paris are tenuous, it pretty nicely covers the breadth and breath of the city.

[Inma · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a great idea, it was wonderful to read and think of all the people’s lives touched by Paris. I found some of the poems really moving. I just wished they had been included in the original language as well.

[vivi ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paris is always a good idea!

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly spectacular collection of poems about Paris from both locals and poets visiting from around the world, proving Paris really is "solidified nostalgia."

[Erin Konarski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely little book. Makes me miss Paris big time.

[Abby Zimmerman]

favorites:
in praise of may, by yosano akiko
in paris with you, by james fenton
the mirabeau bridge, by guillaume apollinaire
tarzan in exile, by derry o’Sullivan

[Tatum · Rating 3 out of 5]

some were lovely, others were meh but overall made me want to book another trip immediately