Bookstores hold a special interest for writers and readers everywhere. They are the stuff of an important part of life.

While in France during the second half of October 2015 I must have seen a few dozen, especially in Paris where they are so very specialized. Two in Alsace piqued my curiosity more than usual. One in Ribeauville had a lighthearted exterior, where the illustration of the little boy seems to be standing on the boîtes à lettres. The other was in Strasbourg, down a dark alley that had more than average vegetation. The shop was all but hidden, with an inconspicuous sign announcing that it sold Livres. Old books, that is, if and when the shop owner was there to open the door.

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