Guide Books Blog Posts
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Visit the Paris Tourist Office for guidebooks or download and read them before you arrive.
Buying your books in Paris
If you decide to buy when you arrive, Paris has 14 English language bookstores. I will soon have that list for you.
Though some of these books may only be available in French, the basic information (ratings on hotels, addresses, maps, restaurant opening times, etc. and such information) is universal.
French bookstores: FNAC or Virgin Megastore are two examples of the large bookstore in Paris. Otherwise,
W.H.Smith and Galignani (all located on rue de Rivoli) are the largest Paris bookstores.
W.H. Smith
248, rue de Rivoli Paris 1st
Metro: Concorde
01 44 77 88 99
Monday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday and holidays 12:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Open 362 days a year; Closed January 1, May 1 and December 25
Galignani http://www.galignani.com/en/galignani.php
“The first English book store established on the continent”
Librairie Galignani is open Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 7pm.
224, rue de Rivoli Paris 1st
01 42 60 76 07
Seven Ages of Paris
This is a great book on the history of Paris — reads like a novel — hits the highlights from the beginning to about 1969. Although there are details, it flows like the Seine.
The Seven Ages of Paris is an abridged cultural, architectural and personality history, which makes it quite interesting. It is a pleasure to pick up and read and put down, but you cannot wait to get back to it again.
Paris was not always a city of light. On the contrary, it was quite sludgy, muddy, foul-smelling, and a real den of thieves. So where did the light come from? Individual lanterns gave way to groups of candles in a lantern
(6,500 lamps had to be lit every night) to oil and then to gas under Louis Napoleon and Haussmann.
Most of the kings and emperors put their mark on its architecture, either with new designs or modifying what someone had done before: Henry IV’s red brick at Place Dauphine and Place des Vosges to the variety of ecclesiastical styles and ornate opera under Louis Napoléon (who also carried out many of his uncle’s building plans).
Access in Paris Access in Paris: A Guide for Those Who Have Problems Getting Around (Access Guides)<img src=”http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=colspar-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1870948629″ width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”" style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” />
“This well established guidebook was originally published in 1974, and was the first guidebook ever to use the
title ‘Access’ referring to access by disabled people. Later editions were published in 1985, 1993 and 2008.
The website includes updated information and is available as a book or can be downloaded in PDF format from the website from June 2008.” Contact Gordon Couch
According to the Access in Paris Website: “They are working with the Association des Paralysés de France (www.apf.asso.fr) and with a group called Mobile en Ville (www.mobile-en-ville.asso.fr) who, among other things, have mapped the pavements in the whole of Paris for their surface and the height of any ramped kerbs. The maps and other useful information is held on their Website.”
Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light Paris, Paris: Journey into the City of Light<img src=”http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=colspar-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0307886085″ width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”" style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” />
