Librairie à Soi(e)

 

To say that I simply adore books is an understatement. Libraries and bookstores have always felt like places separated from the rest of the world. Pockets from the noise of everything. A place where you can go to rest or escape into an adventure of any kind. Naturally, I sought out a bookstore and visited Librairie à Soi(e). The store is women-owned, and features a plethora of French books, including some that we’ve gotten familiar with, like Colette. The interior was comfortable, and I could just imagine myself cozying up to a nice book there.

There was one section of the bookstore, the back corner, which was dedicated to not just questioning gender norms, but questioning gender norms with child. That is, this section was French books for children were the topics related to understanding what being queer means and how to understand where you fall on that spectrum. It was so cool to see such a section in this bookstore. It’s just a reminder of how important and easy it is to introduce these topics to children. I imagine if I had had books like these, that features queer themes in them, how might that have helped me understand myself? For me as a kid, books were safe spaces, so it made me incredibly happy to see so many safe spaces on one shelf.

Pulling away from the corner of the bookstore to the very front, on display were these gorgeous pieces of art, made in the likeness of vaginas. Next to those, were cards which also features vaginas on the front. Being queer, there is this liberation and control in embracing sexuality. In embracing something that others have always told you to keep quiet or hidden, as if ashamed. Here, among the many books about sexuality, gender exploration, and an openness to the reality and beauty of anatomy (decoupling the hyper sexualization of certain body parts), Librairie à Soi(e) felt like a queer space. There is nowhere else, aside from queer spaces, where you’ll find ceramic vaginas greeting you as you checkout. There is humor and acceptance there. More spaces like this, which makes room for those topics or people that are told to stay quiet or out-of-the-way are needed. I couldn’t recommend going here enough.