Damn Fine Bookstore

27/12/2022

JANUARY BOOKCLUB !
- January theme : favourite read of 2022 ! The beginning of a new year is a good time to think about every book we read in 2022 ! I know that it's hard to pick only one, sorry not sorry, I'll have to choose too ! You can pick the book that made you laugh the most, cry the most, the one that warmed your heart the most, etc. ! I can't wait to see what you'll bring (and what I'll bring 🤡)
- January book : Her Body and Other Parties, by Carmen Maria Machado. This collection of short stories is once again - to no one surprise - disturbing & weird ! I don't think that I understood all of them, and I even admit that I DNF one of them, so do not force yourself !
The plot : Carmen Maria Machado demolishes the borders between magical realism and science fiction, comedy and horror, fantasy and fabulism. Bodies become inconsequential, humans become monstrous, and anger becomes erotic.
You can now write me an email at [email protected] (link in bio) to let me know if you wish to participate to the :
- themed bookclub : meeting on Thursday, 12, at 6.30 pm !
- classic bookclub : meeting on Saturday, 21, at 9.00 am !
Food and drinks will be there, the inscription will cost 5€ (3€ if you buy/have bought the book at the shop) that you can pay in advance or the night of the bookclub !
See you very soon 💫

24/12/2022

Happy Christmas Eve dear Damn Fine Readers !
🎄📚
The end of the year is a time for list : how many books have been read, the 5 top reads, the 10 top reads, the number of pages read, etc.
But for now, let’s just add more to the pile !!
This is my holidays TBR pile ! Not typically festive but they are to me !
Thanks to the bookclub I have a fantasy (The Binding) and a non fiction (Reading Lo**ta in Tehran), thanks to the cinema and podcast I have a YA horror (Bones & All) and a non fiction (I’ll Have What She’s Having), thanks to Daisy Jones & The Six, I have another fictional band to discover (The Final Revival of Opal & Nev), thanks to Daphne Du Maurier I have a gothic classic (Vera) and thanks to the entire world, I have the ultimate Christmas classic (A Christmas Carol)
I’m so excited by every book in this pile I can’t WAIT !
What about you? What are you reading for the holidays?!
📚🎁
I wish you a merry Christmas and more than anything else, I wish you plenty of books, under the tree if you celebrate or under your nightstand if you don’t !!
I can’t wait to see you all next year for a new damn fine year of reading while drinking coffee, our true passion !
📚❤️
Lots of love from your damn fine bookseller
If you want to see how happy I am about my pile, you can just swipe ➡️🧑🏻‍🎄

16/12/2022

Yesterday was the themed bookclub and what a fun time we had !
The theme was 'books about books' and I discovered many stories that I'll add to my TBR pile right away ! We talked about The Girl Who Reads on the Metro, Book Love, The Haunted Bookshop, Reading Lo**ta in Teheran, The Binding, The Midnight Library, Papyrus (here in French on the picture) and The Book of the Most Precious Substance !
Fiction, magic, fantasy, graphic novel, non fiction, there were many different literary genres and it's the best thing about bookclub : to mix everything together around one common theme !
But we also talked about bibliotherapy, cats and dogs in books, book covers, reading (and judging) in the subway, 50 shades of Grey, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and many more things ! We ate (a lot of) great cakes and christmas cookies, THANK YOU so much for bringing these sugary delights, perfect way to celebrate the end of the year and I can't wait to go on with these amazing bookclubs next year !!

11/12/2022

2023 will mark 400 years of Shakespeare : William Shakespeare's first volume of collected plays was published in 1623 !
To celebrate this anniversary, Shakespeare Okuni, actor, director, educator, among other things, will host a bookclub (almost) every Wednesday of 2023 at the bookstore for 36 sessions to look at each one of the plays and open a discussion on all things Shakespearean !
✦ What do you need to come ? Absolutely nothing !! The main word for these sessions is : openness ! You love Shakespeare ? You can come ! You don't know one thing about Shakespeare ? You can come ! You never read Shakespeare but you want to ? You can come ! You never read Shakespeare and you don't want to ? You can come ! Wanna come to only some sessions ? You can ! In conclusion : come as you are !
✦ What is the program for January's sessions ?
- Wednesday, 11 : Pericles
- Wednesday 18 : The Two Noble Kinsmen
- Wednesday 25 : A Midsummer Night’s Dream
✦ How can I sign in ? You can register on the Doodle form created especially for these events ! You'll find the link here : https://doodle.com/meeting/organize/id/boV11vja but also on the main page of the shop's website, if you clic on "2023 : Damn Fine Shakespeare Bookclub !"
Hoping to see you there ! Feel free to ask me any questions !
#2023

08/12/2022

Dispositif Angela - Lyon 7 - Google My Maps

Damn Fine Booksotre is now a part of 'Demandez Angela', a collective system created to fight against gender & sexual harassment in the street !
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Damn Fine Bookstore est maintenant partenaire du dispositif 'Demandez Angela', un dispositif de lutte contre le harcèlement sexuel et sexiste dans la rue !

Une personne vous harcèle ou vous importune dans la rue ? "Demandez Angela" dans un commerce refuge, les commerçants et commerçantes ont été formés pour vous mettre en sécurité. Ce dispositif est un partenariat entre la Mairie du 7e arrondissement de Lyon, les commerces partenaires et la pol...

29/11/2022

DECEMBER BOOKCLUB ! Please read the entire caption : you have to write me an email to join & be sure that you're available on the meeting dates 🤗
- December theme : books about books ! If you're here, you obviously love BOOKS, and what's better than a book about books ? It can be a fiction, a non-fiction, happening in a bookstore or a library, revolving around a bookseller's life or just around a peculiar book or several books ! I can't wait to see what you'll bring !!
- December book : Eileen, by Ottessa Moshfegh. I read this book in two day. So disturbing & weird, this is the debut novel of Ottessa Moshfegh and it's 100% her ! I can't WAIT to talk about it with you ! Be ready : the book is set on the week before Christmas, but it's not at all a Christmas-sy story -- sorry, not sorry 🎅
The plot : It's 1964 and the Christmas season offers little cheer for Eileen Dunlop, an unassuming yet (very) disturbedyoung woman trapped between her role at home, taking care of her alcoholic father, and a day job as a secretary at the boys' prison. Consumed by resentment and self-loathing, she fills her nights and weekends with shoplifting and stalking a buff prison guard named Randy. But soon, someone new enters the scene and her life takes an unexpected turn.
TW : suicidal thoughts, fatphobia
You can now write me an email at [email protected] (link in bio) to let me know if you wish to participate to the :
- themed bookclub : meeting on Thursday, 15, at 6.30 pm !
- classic bookclub : meeting on Saturday, 17, at 9.00 am !
Food and drinks will be there, the inscription will cost 5€ (3€ if you buy/have bought the book at the shop) that you can pay in advance or the night of the bookclub !
See you very soon 💫

25/11/2022

YOU'LL FIND HERE ALL THE INFO FOR CHRISTMAS 🎄
- WHEN YOU CAN PLACE YOUR ORDER FOR EACH LANGUAGE
- THE SPECIAL OPENING DAYS IN DECEMBER !
SEE YOU SOON 🤶
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Ici toutes les infos concernant Noël 🎄
- Quand passer commande selon les langues
- Les jours d'ouverture exceptionnels en décembre !
A bientôôôoôt 🤶

23/11/2022

Christmas is just around the corner, and you'll find more and more gorgeous & winter-ish books at the shop ! Let's start with this wonderful selection !!
First : everything Christmas-ish of course ! We have some cosy mystery (the queen Agatha Christie's The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, the french note with Death and Papa Noël, and a contemporary mystery with An Unfortunate Christmas Murder), some cute romance (The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan of course !), some fiction (Christmas Puding), some classics (A Christmas Memory & A Christmas Carol obviously) and two wonderful non-fiction (A Scandinavian Christmas & The Penguin Book of Christmas Stories) — you can swipe to see each cover because YES they're as beautiful as you think !
Then swipe again : some gift ideas ! We have the bible of literature : The Literature Book, if you have a bookish friend (every group of friends has one and if you don't, it means it's you !), the bible of modern feminism : Badly Behaved Women, if you have a feminist friend (who isn't ?), a gorgeous gorgeous historical book on BOOKS and readers, Portable Magic, for your other bookish friend (yes, yes, I know), the Scriptures of Fleabag for your Fleabag's nerdy friend, a cookbook, The Little Library Christmas, for your cookish friend, and finally The Little Book of Shakespeare's Insults for your Shakespeare's nerdy friend. So you see : there's something for -almost- everyone !
And last but not least, swipe again because the kiddos can celebrate Christmas too ! Whether it's with Wally (Where's Wally Santa Spotlight Search), with the Grinch (How the Grinch Stole Christmas) or with fearless girls from all over the world (Fairy Tales for Fearless Girls)
If you give it a little swipe you’ll see that the Christmas table is ready for you !
What do you think ? Are you ready to get into Christmas/Winter mode ?
I hope you are because this is far from over !

19/11/2022

This morning, we talked about Severance, by Ling Ma, and we had pleeeenty to say !
In Severance, when Shen Fever spreads, families flee, companies halt operations, the subways squeak to a halt, but Candace Chen sequesters herself in a Manhattan office tower and tries to keep working. Soon entirely alone, still unfevered, she photographs the eerie, abandoned city. Enter a group of survivors, led by the power-hungry Bob. They’re traveling to a place called the Facility where, Bob promises, they will have everything they need to start society anew. But Candace is carrying a secret she knows Bob will exploit. Should she escape from her rescuers?
Personally it was my favorite bookclub pick so far, but the opinion wasn't unanimous ! Still it was a door to a really great talk about globalisation, what it means to be an immigrant, family & generational heritage, post-apocalyptic tropes & stories, pregnancy, cult, bibles, and many many other things ! It was such an interesting talk and I can only recommend Severance if you're into post-apocalyptic books (and I'm not the only one, one of us is a huge post-apo lover - lindsey - and LOVED the book !)
Bonus : swipe to see the tenth participant to the bookclub this morning

11/11/2022

Yesterday evening was November's themed bookclub ! We talked about non-fiction and it was soooo nice !!
We talked about Antigone Rising, The Comfort Book, The Lonely Hunter, Obsessive Intrusive Magical Thinking, The Anthropocene Reviewed, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Just Kids, My Body and Motherhood ! So many different topics discussed, from the pressure to have kids to the pressure to be in a romantic relationship or even the pressure to have a *perfect* body, from mythology to the counterculture of the 1960s in the US, from the medical system in the US in the 50s (and nowadays) to ADHD diagnosis in women, from what's a feel-good book to the hope in humanity in general : YES, that's a LOT and it was so interesting to talk about all this while drinking wine (multitaskers here we are !)
We also talked about Robin Hobb and Becky Chambers, Colleen Hoover and Sarah J Maas (and adult *adult* books 😏 ), the podcast Book Reviews Kill, being able to read several books at the same time (spoiler alert : I can't !) and many more things !
Thanks again to all of you for coming and I hope to see you soon to talk a little bit more about books (for a change 🙃)

09/11/2022

Loved this ? Read that !
As you may know, the more I read, the more I tend to link books together, through the plot, the main character or even just the mood/vibe of the book !
Swipe to see which book you can choose based on another book you loved !!
1- Mythological retelling are trending these days, but Stoneblind by Natalie Haynes really was out of this world, I loved it so much and it left me with the same feeling that Circe left me with 3 years ago

09/11/2022

FYI :
The bookstore will be open this Friday, 11, on the bank holiday 🥳
But it'll be closed on Saturday, 12 ! 🥰
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Pour info :
La librairie sera ouverte ce vendredi 11 novembre 🥳
Mais elle sera fermée le samedi 12 ! 🥰

02/11/2022

New month, new window !
In November, let’s celebrate non-fiction ! It’s this month’s bookclub’s theme and it’s always good to take some time to dive into non-fiction, especially if it’s not what you read usually ! I think that non-fiction can appear scary and overwhelming but you can also find some funny lighthearted non fictional books !
Once I’ll finish the current fiction I’m reading, I’ll pick a non fiction myself and I can’t wait !!
In the window you’ll find some brilliant essays, a memoir and a funny guide to surviving the patriarchy !
Do you often read non-fiction? Is it a genre you wish to read more? Let me know !

28/10/2022

It was a hell of an evening ! Thank you thank you ALL for coming to the bookshop last night. You really are the best customers EVER, it was GLORIOUS ! I’m so glad to have been able to see & talk to many of you and I hope you enjoyed yourself ! It was sooooo nice to talk about everything spooky ! Glad to know that the pumpkin punch was a success 🎃 and that you enjoyed watching the Halloween episodes of some oldie but goldie series !!!
And it means the world to me to just see you meeting each other at the shop !
To many more damn fine events to come 🧡
➡️ swipe to see the spooky buffet, the bookshop full of people & last but not least : my bloody costume !

25/10/2022

BOTH BOOKCLUBS ARE SOLD OUT, THANK YOU FOR YOUR ENTHUSIASM 🥰❤️
NOVEMBER BOOKCLUB ! Please read the entire caption : you have to write me an email to join & be sure that you're available on the meeting dates 🤗
- November theme : Non-fiction ! Some of you may know it : NonFictionNovember is a month-long nonfiction reading initiative ! Best time to dive into some non-fiction books and I can't wait to see what you'll bring !!
- November book : Severance, by Ling Ma. I'm almost finishing the book as we speak and it was SO good. So disturbing, I can't WAIT to talk about it with you !
The plot : Candace Chen, a millennial drone self-sequestered in a Manhattan office tower, is devoted to routine. When Shen Fever spreads, families flee, companies halt operations, the subways squeak to a halt. Soon entirely alone, still unfevered, she photographs the eerie, abandoned city. Enter a group of survivors, led by the power-hungry Bob. They’re traveling to a place called the Facility where, Bob promises, they will have everything they need to start society anew. But Candace is carrying a secret she knows Bob will exploit. Should she escape from her rescuers?
You can now write me an email at [email protected] (link in bio) to let me know if you wish to participate to the :
- themed bookclub : meeting on Thursday, 10, at 6.30 pm !
- classic bookclub : meeting on Saturday, 19, at 9.00 am !
Food and drinks will be there, the inscription will cost 5€ (3€ if you buy/have bought the book at the shop) that you can pay in advance or the night of the bookclub !
See you very soon 💫

18/10/2022

Spooky scary corner 🎃
Halloween is in less than two weeks, time to choose your spooky read for the season !
There’s something for everyone, wether you’re into scary fiction, romance, thriller, short stories, disgusting stuff ( 🫠), classics, ghost story, magic… you’ll find something for you in this corner !
So, what will it be for you? Tell me !!!

15/10/2022

This morning, we talked about Carmilla, by Sheridan le Fanu. The book tells us the story of Laura, living alone with her father in Austria. When a carriage crashes near their home, they host momentarily a guest : Carmilla, a very beautiful young girl, who gets very soon very close to Laura, while this one now feels very sick and has awful nightmares each night...
So YES, it's the first vampire book, 26 years before Dracula, there was Carmilla. We all loved the book ! We obviously talked a little bit about Dracula, but also about how this sapphic history was a bold one for the time period. We talked about the image of the vampire in books and movies, how this one wasn't a difficult book to read and could be a great book to start reading classics in English ! We felt that the ending was a bit rushed but the entire book is very eerie and left some of us in a weird state, half between dream and nightmare, especially since there's many points never explained throughout the book, which leaves plenty of space for our imagination to work ! Personally I loved it and if you're afraid of the 500-ish pages of Dracula, you can go for this one, who's very small,but also gothic and a perfect read for October !
Thanks again to all of you for coming to the bookclub, it's always my favorite time of the month to talk with you about books, and I really loved this one, I hope you enjoyed it !!