The hunt for a tome

The book was elusive.  To find it required repeated efforts.  I, the science writer, tried first.  Then Tom the professor looked for it.  We requested the assistance of the junior librarian.  She could not find it either.  She pronounced it lost.

Le Clin d'Oeil on Rue Copreaux in the 15th arrondissement.

The book is a collection of essays, published in the 1990s.  The editor (and author of one of the essays) has written and published a large number of books.  The American Library in Paris seems to have them all listed in its card catalog.

I'm talking about one of the great Toni Morrison's books.  She died nine days ago, at age 88.  Surely the library would have a special display of her books, I thought.  And alas I found that it does.  A sign and special Lucite bookstands marked the spot.  Only two of the bookstands had books on them.  The others were probably checked out said the junior librarian.

Fountain in front of Le Village Suffren apartment building on Avenue de Suffren.

The one we need for work was not checked out, according to the computer.  Yet three of us, all people who are very familiar with libraries, could not find it.

The senior librarian (who is not very old) breezed into the reception area to help with the quest.  She cheerfully ascended to the mezzanine where we'd already searched.  Amid the many Toni Morrison books neatly shelved there, the senior librarian found the obscure volume that we need.  When she brought it to the main desk where Tom was waiting, he was prolific in his thanks to her.

We like this fence design which we first saw done in rusty rebar
in the garden of the Musée Branly.  Here, in front of Le Village Suffren apartments,
the fence is in a metal alloy with a durable finish.  We think this reed or cattail design
would do well in South Florida.

The senior librarian said the book was just where it was supposed to be.  Tom went back upstairs to see where he went wrong.  Toni's many books take up two to three shelves, and this one volume was on a bottom shelf, where it is difficult to see.  Most of her books are on the top two shelves of the next column.

Meanwhile, I found the next two Cara Black "Aimée Leduc" murder mysteries that I want to read for fun.  I'm reading book 4 in the series on my Kindle.  I found the fifth and sixth books in the library, no problem.  Cara writes well, plus she uses her substantial knowledge of the history of Paris to give her books more interest and substance than many murder mysteries have.  I must say that I like her politics and humanity, too.

The American Library staff must agree that her books are worthwhile because they have them all.  I intend to read them all, so being able to get the dead tree books from the library will save me from buying the e-books at $10 a crack on the Kindle.  (No, Mom, I don't seem to be able to get them on Overdrive.)

Cara's tales take place mostly on the other side of Paris.  Each book is set mainly in a particular neighborhood.  So far as I've progressed in the series, Cara has covered the Marais, Belleville, the Sentier, and the Bastille.  Next come Murder in Clichy and Murder on the Île St. Louis, both dead tree books sitting on the table beside me.

After the library errand, we paused in front of the bookstore that has the old map of Paris on its façade (Avenue de la Bourdonnais, just south of Avenue Rapp).  As I suspected, the bookstore is closed until later this month.  We shall return.

We bought bread at a bakery on the way home.  We deposited the books and bread at home, grabbed the shopping trolley, and walked to the Franprix grocery.  We shopped efficiently so that we had just enough time to rest our feet before venturing out to dinner at Le Clin d'Oeil ("The Wink") on the Rue Copreux.

The dinner was curiously uneven:  Tom's veal was dry, but his pasta and sauce were seemingly home made and quite good.  My duck was dry and tough, but the sauce and the veggies were very good.  The ambiance of the restaurant was warm, and we enjoyed seeing the many black-and-white photos of American movie stars in frames on the walls.

Here are photos from the dinner:

Veal scallopini and pasta

Duck breast and veggies