The bookstores with tradition in Bucharest conceal extraordinary stories in which the colored cultural life of the capital of Romania is spoken about. With a 70-year history, The Bookstore Company in Bucharest hosted, in its locations strewn across the whole of Bucharest, real events during which first-class writers have launched their books. Today, great book launch events are being conducted either at Cărtureşti or Humanitas, places that hosted many of the authors of the day on an international level.
We started off on the trail of the authors who now belong to the plethora of the Romanian literature and set up an appointment with them at the … bookstore. It’s true that our meeting is only an imaginary one, but, walking through these places in which at one time Nichita Stănescu would recite his poems, Marin Preda would introduce his novel “Moromeţii,” and Marin Sorescu would parody his fellows-writers, we felt like getting into the world of those exceptional writers.
“Mihail Sadovenu” Bookstore
Our first stopover was at “Mihail Sadoveanu” Bookstore about which the story goes that it’s one of the oldest in Bucharest.
Located today on Edgar Quinet Street, three years ago the bookstore knew a very difficult episode which was on the verge of permanently stopping a story that had already stretched over a period of more than six decades. The Court’s ruling to retrocede the old bookstore’s headquarters to the building’s owners necessitated urgent measures. Thus, the decision was made to the effect that another bookstore within the Bucharest Bookstore Company network would be branded by the name of “Mihail Sadoveanu.” So, this is how the move from Magheru Boulevard to the location on Edgar Quinet Street has occurred.
Only thus was it possible to salvage a bookstore that included in its history book launch events of a number of the most famous Romanian writers. At “Mihail Sadoveanu,” Marin Preda, Nichita Stănescu, Marin Sorescu, Fănuş Neagu, D. R. Popescu, Octavian Paler, but also other reputed authors in the Romanian literature set up appointments with the readers.
The Bookstore is today under the management of Elefteria Popescu, the one who spoke to us both of the honorable occupation of a bookkeeper, and of the fact that Romanians have always been fond of the world of books. To Mrs. Popescu, the bookkeeper occupation entails a lot of commitment. “You must love the book, but at the same time love the reader. You need to enjoy the atmosphere, to enjoy this field. The bookkeeper occupation is one that is very demanding on you, but you have the satisfaction to work directly with people,” points out the representative of “Mihail Sadoveanu” Bookstore.
Surprisingly perhaps for some, Romanians do go to the bookstore. “We have many book-loves. Those who offer books as gifts are in great number. There are also the young ones who come from behind. There are teenagers who chase certain editions, who chase the editorial issues,” adds Elefteria Popescu.
„Mihai Eminescu” Bookstore
In this landscape of Bucharest’s bookstores, the location dedicated to Mihai Eminescu had no way to be missing. The bookstore bearing his name is located right at „the heart of the city,” on Bulevardul Regina Elisabeta / Queen Elisabeth Boulevard, in close vicinity of Piaţa Universităţii / University Square.
Possessed of a generous space stretching out all the way to the basement of the building housing the bookstore, the location is a real book paradise. Is the ideal place where the reader can revel among the shelves, on a quest for the favorite title, or can participate in the various cultural events being organized here.
During our chat with Geta Vodislav, the sales director of „Mihai Eminescu” Bookstore, she told us that overall, the bookstore plays a major role in Bucharest’s landscape, being a source of information, a source of culture. In recent years, very many bookstores have emerged in the city, and this situation offers nothing but joy both to the literature-lovers, and to the book-promoters.
Humatitas and Cărturești
Very close to Cișmigiu Park, on Queen Elisabeth Boulevard, we find one of the Humanitas bookstores. The location is famous among the Bucharestians and among the tourists coming here for the atmosphere, for a good book, but also to socialize.
The Bookstore’s interior design is planned in such a way as to comply with the European standards of the field. The bookstore is not only a place where books are being sold, but also a space where you may enjoy a flavored tea, or where you may relish in drinking a coffee.
Another well-known place among lovers of books, but also of cultural events, is Cărturești Bookstore on Arthur Verona Street. In a fairytale atmosphere, those who come here have the opportunity to get into a special environment. The location is set up in a historical monument building, a mansion constructed in 1883, and where Politician and Academician D. A. Sturdza lived.
Author: Ștefania Enache
Photo: Corina Gheorghe
