Literary Paris

Associate Editor Amy Alipio recently interviewed Shannon McKenna Schmidt and Joni Rendon, authors of the new book Novel Destinations, a travel guide for the literary aesthete. We asked them to plan a bookish day in the literary city of their choice and not surprisingly, they opted for Paris. We challenge you to follow the day's itinerary and not be inspired to write a novel of your own.

Paris is certainly one of the best choices for a literary vacation, and depending on your budget, you could awaken on the Left Bank at either the Hotel du Quai Voltaire, where modestly-priced rooms come with views of the Seine and Louvre, or the lavishly remodeled L’Hotel, both of which counted Oscar Wilde among their clientele.

Stroll along the Seine, browsing the book stalls lining the riverbank, until you reach Notre-Dame. Follow in Victor Hugo’s footsteps for a sprawling view of Paris and climb the cathedral’s towers, which feature in his novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame. After a brief stop at the nearby legendary bookstore Shakespeare and Company, head for La Maison de Victor Hugo, the author’s town house-turned-museum in the picturesque Marais district.

Next venture to the off-the-beaten-path 16th arrondissement to visit the hilltop home of Hugo’s friend, Honoré de Balzac, who worked there on The Human Comedy in a sun-filled study while dressed, peculiarly, in a monk’s robe. If time allows, take the “Hemingway’s Paris” walking tour of the Latin Quarter to see sites he described in his memoir A Moveable Feast or stroll through Père-Lachaise Cemetery and pay homage to the literary figures laid to rest there. (Wilde’s tombstone covered in lipstick prints is a highlight.)

Have dinner at Le Procope, which opened in 1686 during the reign of Louis XIV and boasts an illustrious roster of literary patrons including Victor Hugo, Oscar Wilde, Honoré de Balzac, and Voltaire (be sure to seek out the latter’s writing desk on display on the restaurant’s upper floor).

Finish the day by toasting Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the other American expatriate writers who lived and wrote in Paris in the 1920s with a nightcap at La Closerie des Lilas, which Hemingway declared “one of the best cafés in Paris.”

Photo: A bust of Victor Hugo at the author's townhouse-turned museum. By jdong via Flickr.

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Comments

[Suz]

Ok, I'm sold. When's the next flight to Paris?

I'm such a fan of English literature, I often forget the French masters that I LOVE. Now, if only I could learn to read it...

[maitresse]

I hope the fact that Wilde died at L'Hotel made it into the book, as the (unchanged) decor there occasioned his priceless last words: "either that wallpaper goes, or I do."