Reading list

Paris in Books

Books with scenes in Paris, each with places marked on the map. Plus books chosen for a similar mood.

6 books · 5 with Paris scenes, 1 chosen for its mood · Paris places on the map

What books are set in Paris?

5 books on Storyland have scenes in Paris: A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway, Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin, The Paris Wife by Paula McLain, and The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery — each pinned to a Paris location you can visit.

  • A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
  • Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
  • Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin
  • The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
  • The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery

  1. A Moveable Feast

    Ernest Hemingway

    Paris scenes

    Hemingway's 1920s Paris — the cafés, the Luxembourg Gardens, the Lost Generation at work.

    Places: Montparnasse & the Latin Quarter

  2. Les Misérables

    Victor Hugo

    Paris scenes

    Hugo's epic of revolt threads the real streets, barricades, and sewers of 19th-century Paris.

    Places: Paris — the barricades & the sewers

  3. Giovanni's Room

    James Baldwin

    Paris scenes

    Baldwin’s aching love story set in the bars and rented rooms of postwar Left Bank Paris.

    Places: Saint-Germain & bohemian Paris

  4. The Paris Wife

    Paula McLain

    Paris scenes

    The Hemingways' Paris from Hadley's side — the same cafés, a different vantage.

    Places: 1920s Paris

  5. The Elegance of the Hedgehog

    Muriel Barbery

    Paris scenes

    Hidden lives inside an elegant Parisian apartment house on the Left Bank.

    Places: A Left Bank apartment building

  6. My Life in France

    Julia Child

    Read for the mood

    Child's joyous Paris of markets and kitchens — the city told through its food.

Reading your way into Paris

From Hemingway's Left Bank to Hugo's barricades, Paris has been imagined more than almost any city on earth. The books below are drawn from Storyland's book↔place engine and checked against real locations.

Frequently asked

What books are set in Paris?

Storyland lists 5 books with scenes in Paris: A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway, Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin, The Paris Wife by Paula McLain, and The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. Their Paris places are marked on the map.

What should I read before visiting Paris?

Before visiting Paris, read A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway (Montparnasse & the Latin Quarter), Les Misérables by Victor Hugo (Paris — the barricades & the sewers), Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin (Saint-Germain & bohemian Paris), The Paris Wife by Paula McLain (1920s Paris), and The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery (A Left Bank apartment building). Each has scenes in Paris, with the places marked on the map.