The bouquinistes of Tbilisi

The bouquinistes of Tbilisi are largely unknown, mainly because they have newly formed along the Mtkvari River. Bouquinistes are booksellers that sell their pre-loved, second-hand, and used books from ‘green boxes’ attached to the walled river bank and locked when not in use.

The bouquinistes of Paris are legendary, and the three kilometres of bouquinistes along the Seine River are registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site. In Paris there are 240 bouquinistes with about 900 green boxes.

The green boxes of Parisian bouquinistes are 2 metres long by 0.75 metres wide. The green boxes of the Tbilisi bouquinistes are smaller – at half the length. And they are not green – they are metallic black with wooden fronts. Near the Dry Bridge, the row of 60 green boxes, nicely numbered, are adjacent to the skate park and green space where dog walkers meander and people perform their exercises.

MARTINA NICOLLS is the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).