Italy and its Remarkable Book Stores

It is captivating to go to a book store that has titles in foreign languages. All you can do is gaze around, sift through the pages and wonder if you will ever know what is written between those pages. 

I visited several bookshops in Italy, some in passing, some to wile away time, some to purchase a title or two in English. 

Out of all of the ones I visited, I have tried to compile a list of three of my favourite book stores. Each store had a uniqueness of its own along with a great collection of books not only in Italian but also in English.

- Libreria Perfetto In Perugia

Libreria Perfetto is not the real name of this bookstore. Located in a narrow alley in Perugia, this old fashioned store had no name board when I entered, so I gave it the name of Perfetto book store, because it came to me at a perfect timing. 

Perfetto is one of those book shops that have no atmosphere but you just have to visit it to know it. And I guess that was the beauty of this place.

When I entered, a huge carton of second hand books in the front filled with titles in English welcomed me at the door. The entire shop was filled with numerous books in no particular order or genre. I was bound to visit every nook and corner to find what I wanted, as there were no labels or directions to help you.

I found Tim Parks Italian Neighbors for only EUR 2 lying in one of the cartons at the side. It was a steal, and I did not miss buying it. It seemed the owner was trying to get rid of his old stock.

Then I went to check every other shelf to see more titles in English. What caught my eye next was Elizabeth Browning's small book of poetry! Sigh! I quickly picked it up before someone else could but to my dismay saw that the book was torn and some of the pages were missing. 

I moved to another shelf which had the maximum selection of English titles and found myself beaming. I had found an old copy of Jan Morris's Venice. It was time to bargain. The owner was a bit shy to speak to me because he did not know English. But he did try and explain me his point and we settled at EUR 4. It was a fulfilling moment.

Wander the streets of Perugia just behind Palazzo dei Priori and you might chance upon this gem of a store.

 - Libreria Zubboli in Assisi:

Libreria Zubboli is situated in the centre of Assisi, in Piazza del Commune. A small and compact store with an considerable collection of books and a huge collection of stationary, Libreria Zubboli has been around since the year 1870. 

When I entered the store to escape some of the heat of Assisi, I saw many historical books and printed handmade paper on the left hand side. A huge collection of titles on Umbria greeted me on the right in several languages. 

An Italian lady dressed in a pretty yellow dress welcomed me with a smile. She asked me if I had any special titles in mind and in my broken Italian I asked her to show me the section of Italian literature. I knew I was just there to browse around unless I found what something worth buying in English. And I did just that. I sifted through the pages of Italian titles to see what was there for me.  

After a while the lady came up to me and asked, "non vuoi comprare qualcosa?" (You do not want to buy something?) I politely refused, I told her had read several of the English titles already and the others seemed a tad costlier. She seemed a little disappointed but managed a smile.

I loved the calm of those 20 minutes that I spent in the book store. The handmade paper and exquisite stationary will always be part of my memory of the wonderful Zubboli in Assisi.

To know more about Zubboli check here.

- Caffe San Marco Bookstore in Trieste

Located on a quiet corner of Trieste in Via Cesare Battisti, Caffe San Marco is well known because of its connection to writer- James Joyce and poet- Umberto Saba. I was not aware of Caffe San Marco until I read about Trieste. I also had no knowledge of it being a book store either. Therefore when I was visiting, I took it to be just another of the famous caffes of Trieste. 

To my surprise and delight, I found half of the Caffe turned in a book store at the far left corner. Incorporated only in 2013, the book store was pristine, set in ornate wood work and chandeliers. 

It had a range of titles but only a few in English. The manager of the store- a lady, was kind enough to enlighten me why. She told me the cost of translations was high and they encouraged the readers to first to read in their language and then in a foreign one. So the only English books that were there were the ones that were already translated.

It was disappointing to know this piece of information but I tried not to let this hamper my enthusiasm of the place. So I sat in their baroque black and white couch and ordered a coffee that Joyce drank when he frequented the place (I would like to call it the "Joyce Special") I picked up a coffee table book on Roman history and browsed through it while drinking my coffee. It was surreal.

After an hour or so, the lady came to my desk telling me that she had a title in English that she thought I would like. She had brought a copy of "Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere". Would you believe it if I said that that book was on my wishlist since months. What a sweet gesture!

I was overjoyed to find a book that I wanted in my hands and that too from a book store in Trieste. It completed my travel of the city in a special way. 

Check more on San Marco here to know about its book readings and other programmes.