The Marais bookstores

Summer is approaching, it's time to sip a grenadine on the terrace, go out and hang out in the bars and read good books on the banks of the Seine. But where can you find the best bookstores in the Marais? We tell you everything!

Colette's notebooks

Nestled not far from Beaubourg on rue Rambuteau, is the discreet but no less charming Librairie de Colette. Happy coincidence as life sometimes does, the owner of the bookstore has the same name as a French woman of letters, one of the most brilliant novelists, Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette. Well, not so much a coincidence, because it was her father who gave her this name, in homage to the great writer! But Colette never wrote a line in her life because another destiny awaited her, quite simply: that of transmitting culture.

Its bookstore has been part of the literary landscape for a very long time, truly the face of the neighborhood. We enjoy strolling there and finding a thriller or a romance novel between the shelves. It’s the must-see in the Marais!

▼ Colette's Notebooks
23-25 ​​rue Rambuteau, 75004
Open Tuesday to Saturday from 10 a.m. to 19:45 p.m.
Sunday from 14 p.m. to 19 p.m.
Monday from 11:30 a.m. to 19:30 p.m.
01 42 72 95 06

Temple Bookstore

Located next to an old fishmonger, the Temple bookstore specializes in the Jewish world. But unlike other bookstores of its kind, it does not only sell religious works.

The selection is in fact very varied, and you can find fiction novels, cookbooks, comics and even personal development manuals on the shelves. The youth section is particularly comprehensive, as is the historical section divided into several subcategories including “the Dreyfus affair”; “Testimonies from the concentration camps” or even “Shoah” in general. The only requirement of booksellers is that there be a link, directly or indirectly, with the Jewish world.

In addition to ritual objects (candlesticks, kipas, tallits, etc.), the bookstore also offers jewelry but also drawings by the cartoonist Martin Holt, not without a certain self-deprecation!

Many international tourists pass through the door of the brand, but not only that. There are a few curious people there who also wish to discover Jewish culture in a different way, particularly with the wide choice of manuals for learning Hebrew. It is testimony that the Jewish quarter of Marais still has a bright future ahead of it, even if it has been greatly reduced in recent years due to gentrification...

▼ Temple Bookstore
1 Rue des Hospitalières Saint-Gervais, 75004 Paris
Open Monday to Thursday and Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 19:30 p.m.
Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 13:30 p.m.
Closed on Saturday
01 42 72 38 00

Laughing Gull

We hear them everywhere in Paris, the seagulls are making their nest this summer in the Marais, at 17bis Rue Pavée.

La Mouette Rieuse is a truly original concept store in the heart of the Marais. It is a bookstore, a gallery and a café-restaurant all in one. The place is really cozy, and has the significant advantage of being open every day.

There you can find, among other things, summer posters, a large selection of books on art and a large stationery section. In short, it's a real Ali Baba cabin, with a relaxed and summer atmosphere.

As an extension of the bookstore, the restaurant area offers a gourmet and tasty interlude, for a lunch break or for any other time of the day. Its terrace, offering a direct view of the rose garden, is a beautiful invitation to relax.

▼ Laughing Gull
17bis Rue Pavée, 75004 Paris
Open every day from 11 a.m. to 19 p.m.
01 43 70 34 74

Belle Lurette Bookstore

This store has been selling books for over a hundred years for our greatest pleasure. And it has kept all its charm of the time with its large dark wooden furniture, a beautiful, authentic setting for displaying books.

In 2006, it became La Belle Lurette. The bookstore is general, and has a small stationery corner.

Literary meetings are also often organized, to find out the program, come and take a look directly in the bookstore!

▼ La Belle Lurette
26 Rue Saint-Antoine, 75004
Open Tuesday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 20 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 19 p.m.
01 42 72 61 76

Tower of Babel bookstore

If you stroll down the rue du Roi de Sicile, you will find this small Italian bookstore full of charm. Don't be shy and push open the door.

Open since 1984, nothing has changed inside the shop and the walls have remained the same, which gives it a certain charm. It sells more than 11.000 books and films, the vast majority of which are in Italian original version. Ideal for learning a new language!

The bookstore also organizes several meetings, exhibitions or readings, the holding of which is informed on its Instagram account.

After wandering between the shelves, go to the small back room called the small gallery. There you will find an exhibition space where art objects are on sale, most often linked to a selection of books on the same theme. And at the end of your visit, you can leave with a bottle of olive oil produced in Sicily.

▼ The Tower of Babel
10 King of Sicily Street, 75004 Paris
Open Tuesday to Saturday, 10 p.m. to 13 p.m. and 14 p.m. to 19 p.m.

Le Pedestrian bookstore in Paris – ©Anaïs Costet

Discover the article on the bookstore The pedestrian of Paris here

▼ The Tower of Babel
58, rue de l’Hotel de Ville, 75004 Paris
From Tuesday to Saturday 11AM - 18PM
Tel: +01 53 69 09 16

Bookstore 0fr – ©Anaïs Costet

Discover the article on the 0fr bookstore here

▼ Ofr bookstore
20, rue Dupetit-Thouars, 75003 Paris
From Tuesday to Saturday 11AM - 18PM
Tel: +01 53 69 09 16

Discover the article on the Globe bookstore here

▼ Globe Bookstore
67 Bd Beaumarchais, 75003
Open Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 19:45 p.m.
Tel: +01 42 77 36 36

Bookstore On the edge of Paris – ©Axel G

Discover the article on the book store On the edge of Paris here

▼ Bookstore Sur le fil de Paris
2 Rue de l'Ave Maria, 75004 Paris
Open every day (except Wednesday) from 14 p.m. to 19 p.m.
Tel: +01 71 20 41 46

Text: Morgane Joulin

22.06.22