When I Pack My Bag

When I pack by bag for a journey of 

10 minutes there and back, it is for all

the things to do on my short journey. 

In my bag will be my laptop, the book 

I am presently reading, tissues, pens, 

a small notebook and in the side pocket, 

my little green thermos of water. On the 

way home there will be space for celery, 

tomatoes or maybe a box of tea 

    ~ nothing too heavy ~

  much lighter than carrying 

  the world on my shoulders. 

“Choose a subject equal to your abilities; think carefully what your 

shoulders may refuse, and what they are capable of bearing.”

~ Horace

Re-Post Book Review: The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George

This is such a fun, romantic novel. I think I enjoyed this second read more. In my first review, I said I thought “the ending was rather weak”. On this read, I felt that it was just right. The trip down the Seine, in France, on Jean Perdu’s barge, the Literary Apothecary of books, took Jean, and his passengers Max and Cuneo on more than just a river cruise. It was learning about life and love for two middle aged men, Jean and Cuneo, and a young man, Max.

From May 15, 2019:

The Little Paris Bookshop will remain on my bookshelf to be reread and reread. Unfortunately for me and for this post, I was unable to attend our book group yesterday. A suspected cold (or was it allergies) had exhausted me, so erring on the side of caution I sadly missed the discussion. Nina George has penned a beautiful love story. From a man’s perspective. Monsieur Jean Perdu, his only love having left him twenty-one years past, has sealed off that part of his life. He does not speak her name, even to himself. He lives in an apartment in Paris surrounded my other long term residents. Most of them chatty, and a bit nosy, women who quite like him. One woman who has recently moved in, divorced and heartbroken, has nothing in the way of furniture. A brief encounter with her cracks open the seal he has so carefully guarded. His work is on a barge named the Literary Apothecary, where he provides books as a physician would write a prescription. Moored on the Seine, he shares this floating library with two cats, named Kafka and Lindgren. A young author, Max Jordan, has moved into the same apartment building and as the story progresses, joins Jean Perdu on his quest to find his long lost love and to resolve his great sadness. He has a problem with that scenario: he has learned that she has probably died. My only concern with this novel is that, for me, the ending is rather weak. Of course, I had decided on certain editorial changes that could have been done to make it more satisfying for me. Regardless, I loved this novel of Jean Perdu and his passengers as they travel down the Seine in fair and foul weather, stopping in ports along the way. Books, food, romance and France set the scene.

“And yes, being lovesick is like being in mourning. Because you die, because your future dies and you with it…There is a hurting time. It lasts for so long. But it gets better. I know that now.”

~ Nina George, The Little Paris Bookshop

Title: The Little Paris Bookshop 

Author: Nina George

Copyright: 2013 

Translation Copyright: 2015 (Simon Pare)

Published in the United States by Penguin Books

Format: Novel

Type: Hardcover and paperback

ISBN: 978-o-553-41879-8

ebook ISBN: 978-o-553-41878-1

Safety in the Heat

I love being outside with the morning sun 

on the other side of the building letting me take my 

breakfast and my writing onto my shady balcony.

The forecast tells me the sun will be turning up 

the temperature throughout the day. In the morning 

I am safe and happy. Safety is a big deal for me and 

in the afternoon heat, safety is best kept indoors. 

Except I was restless. Walking somewhere, anywhere, is my treat; my absolute joy. In the afternoon, do I stay indoors or do I crazily brave the wilting flowers, the melting pavement, the hot cement under my feet and hope the wind is cool enough? On a good day, I’d be off to the grocery store, the pet store, the hair dresser, or just a walk at the lake. But today, despite a clear blue sky, despite a wind that may or may not be friendly, is not a good day. 

I draw the line at being told I can't go for a walk ~ it's too dangerous, you know, with the heat and your epilepsy. But I've been stable for a couple of decades now; merely faint stirrings in some mornings. No tsunami of seizure activity. But I know to hesitate, to breathe and to make a plan before getting all stubborn and taking a bus to the store. Sure I get my walks in, but at what price? Excessive heat + bossy epilepsy can mean the tsunami wall can get knocked down. And believe you me, the heat today is excessive. So I made a plan: test it out by going for a walk around the block. My test results? Too hot for anything more than around the block! No seizure activity, but my thinking got a little wonky until I cooled off. 

(I did nip into the gas station for a small carton of ice cream before taking my perspiring self into the cool.)

“Epilepsy is something nobody knows much about. It’s just a 

part of me, part of my head, part of what’s happening 

in there. Sometimes something in my brain triggers it off.”

~ Neil Young, musician