The Word Bookstore, or simply The Word, is an independent bookstore in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada, located in the

McGill Ghetto Milton Park (french: Milton-Parc), commonly known as the McGill Student ghetto, Ghetto, is a neighbourhood in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is situated directly to the east of the McGill University campus in the Boroughs of Montreal, borough of Le P ...

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

. It specializes in used

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

and English

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

books.

History

The bookstore was started by Adrian King-Edwards and Luci Friesen of

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1973 in their own apartment living room as an "underground" bookstore, with a photo of

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

in their front window. The couple, who had first met at McGill University, had spent the previous summer hawking paperbacks out of their Volkswagen van in northern

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, prior to the opening of the store in their apartment. They moved their store next door to its current location on 469 Milton Street in 1975, a 19th-century brick building which was the site of the former neighbourhood

Chinese laundry Laundry refers to the washing of clothing and other textiles, and, more broadly, their drying and ironing as well. Laundry has been part of history since humans began to wear clothes, so the methods by which different cultures have dealt with ...

for 70 years. The Word has frequently ranked as the number one secondhand bookstore in the Montreal Mirror’s annual Best of Montreal list. In 2009, the Quebec Writers’ Federation presented Friesen and King-Edwards with the QWF community award in honour of the couple’s contribution to local literary culture. The Word holds readings of poetic works and publication announcement of local authors and has been cited as an inspiration to

Artie Gold Artie Gold (15 January 1947 – 14 February 2007) was a Montreal-based Canadian poet who rose to prominence in the 1970s as a member of the circle of Montreal-based writers known as The Vehicule Poets. Characterized as one of the wildest and most d ...

and

Sheila Fischman Sheila Leah Fischman (born 1 December 1937) is a Canadian translator who specializes in the translation of works of contemporary Quebec literature from French to English. Born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, she was brought up in Ontario. She hold ...

Specialization

The Word Bookstore specializes in literature, philosophy and poetry. They also carry an assortment of books in such fields as drama, history, political science, theology, Eastern religion, and art. A section located at the front of the store beneath a photo of

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

highlights the latest work of Montreal poets. It is a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of Canada.

References

External links

The Word Bookstore - Montreal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Word Bookstore Independent bookstores of Canada Quebec Anglophone culture in Montreal Antiquarian booksellers Le Plateau-Mont-Royal Shops in Montreal Retail companies established in 1973 1973 establishments in Quebec