In Quimperlé, the book, a timeless Christmas gift

In this age of everything digital and video games, the book is holding up and retains its place at the foot of the Christmas tree. You just have to take a tour of the bookstores in Quimperlé to see it. “It’s always a gift to give. The book remains a safe haven. And we find something for all budgets, from paperbacks at €7 to art Books at over €50,” says Maud Pascal, the manager of the bookstore at the Leclerc cultural space.

“A thoughtful choice”

Like every year at the same time, many customers push through the doors of bookstores. “December is by far the most important month with a turnover twice as high as the other months of the year. Moreover, apart from this influx, certain departments are suffering. Particularly art and cinema books,” emphasizes Maud Pascal. And this choice is not often dictated by urgency to complete a gift list or repair a last-minute oversight. “It’s a thoughtful choice. Customers often ask us for advice,” observes Karine Clugery, the owner of Mots voyageurs, the bookstore located in the lower town. “It’s during this period that the booksellers’ favorite matters a lot in order to inform choices,” confirms Morgane Chrétien, of the Divergences bookstore which opened its doors in the upper town last April.

The literary prize bonus

While they appreciate the advice of professionals, customers also allow themselves to be guided, or influenced, by promotion on television channels or social networks. Thus, the book on the troupe of actors “Le Splendid par le Splendid” has been out of stock at the Leclerc cultural space since mid-December and the book on the creation of Arcane, inspired by a series broadcast on Netflix, a hit in his field. But above all, it is the red banners of the literary prizes which guide the choices. “The books awarded this fall were already selling well before their awards. The Goncourt and the Renaudot allow “Houris” by Kamel Daoud and “Jacaranda” by Gaël Faye to appear among the best sellers with the Goncourt of the high school students “Madeleine avant l’aube” by Sandrine Collette and the Renaudot of the high school students “les Guerriers de winter” by Olivier Norek”, underlines Maud Pascal.

On the comics side, classics like “Lucky Luke” or “Mortelle Adèle” are doing well. Without forgetting the authors who have gained the loyalty of many readers since their previous creations, like Riad Sattouf with “Moi, Fadi le Brother stolen”, or the new volume of “What I like is monsters” by Emil Ferris.

The undecided, the distracted or the busy vacationers are spoiled for choice and still have time to finalize their gift list.