How Paris booksellers make a go of it

The spaces belong to the city and are allotted free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis as vendors retire, move on or die, but the job was never intended to be a person's only source of income. In exchange for the city’s generosity, vendors must respect two requirements, Tessier said. Boxes must be kept clean and free of graffiti and at least 75 percent of the merchandise sold must be books.

Vendors can maintain four boxes: three for books and a smaller fourth for knickknacks and the like. But Tessier said for the last 10 years the city had been lax in enforcing the rules, leading some vendors to “exaggerate” their fourth-box merchandise. Officials are doing more spontaneous stall checks now and could begin punishing noncompliance by withdrawing authorization either temporarily or permanently.

The problem, some vendors said, is that most of the clientele who stroll by these days are tourists who aren’t necessarily interested in buying old books in French, especially if they don’t read or speak the language.

“It’s not practical” what the city is trying to do, said Alain Ryckelynck, 63, who previously headed a bookseller’s union and who has been in the business since 1973. His collection includes old editions of National Geographic.

“You wouldn’t ask an architect for medical advice nor a car mechanic for cooking recipes,” he said, pondering aloud why city officials who have largely ignored the bouquinistes in the past were now meddling in their affairs. He said they were qualified as experts neither in culture nor in business.

In addition, he said, booksellers have always enjoyed their independence to sell whatever they wanted so any official meddling can “quickly feel like a punishment.” First mentioned in writings in 1750, the bouquinistes have a history of selling “forbidden books” that went against the church or against the king, Ryckelynck said. They’ve outlasted revolutions, occupations and censorship, so they’ll most likely survive this impasse too.

Ryckelynck likened his job to that of a doctor, a painter or writer, who feeds a passion first and foremost. “What interests me is the rapport with books and with people,” he said. “If I can earn a little money, great.”

Meanwhile, Nabet planned to wait and see.

“Unfortunately, it’s easier to buy books than to sell them,” he said. “Even my wife buys books on the internet.”

More on Paris:

Celebrating burlesque in Paris

Making a statement with chocolate

Love is blind at this Paris restaurant
 

Global Blogs:

• Latest

More Dispatches:

• Latest

Sponsored Links

Prom Dresses
Brokers Online Health Insurance
Casino News
drug addiction treatment
P90X
Credit Card