Redu Book Village

Redu was a declining farming village of a few hundred people when a local resident, having seen Hay-on-Wye in Wales, persuaded booksellers to open in its empty barns and outbuildings in 1984, and it worked: the village now holds around twenty bookshops along with binderies, print workshops and galleries, and it is twinned with Hay. Stock runs to French-language second-hand and antiquarian books above all, with sections in Dutch, English and German, and specialist dealers in comics, art books, maps and prints. A night of books each August keeps the shops open until dawn. Outside the shops the village is ordinary Ardennes stone and slate, and the Euro Space Center is a short distance away.

What you actually see

• Twenty bookshops in a village - barns and outbuildings converted to trade.
• French antiquarian and second-hand stock - the bulk of what is sold.
• Binderies and print workshops - the crafts that came with the books.
• The August night of books - shops open until dawn once a year.

When to go

April to October; several shops close or reduce hours in winter. Half a day. Weekends have most shops open. The August book night is the village's biggest event.

Honest expectations

Stock is overwhelmingly in French, which limits it for many visitors. Several shops keep irregular hours and some open only at weekends. The village is small with limited eating places. Public transport is poor.

Nearby

The Euro Space Center is a short drive; Saint-Hubert lies east.