On the sixth floor of an old apartment building on Nguyễn Văn Tráng Street in District 1 stands Pages of Passion, a true haven for book lovers. New and used literature from around the world; non-fiction spanning philosophy, natural science, history, biographies, and psychology, and even some poetry fill the floor-to-ceiling shelves in the inviting space. One could spend time wondering why it took so long for a shop like this to open in Saigon, but those hours are better spent perusing the titles that include best-sellers, classics, and global phenomena alongside overlooked treasures.
As an avid reader, to satiate my book habits for the last ten years, I’ve relied on stuffed suitcases lugged in from abroad and enlisting family and friends to act as book mules, as well as PDFs of murky morality. I’ve become acclimated to this cumbersome system. Thus, when friends’ social media started to feature a cozy shop filled with enticing titles, I didn’t think it could possibly be in Saigon. And even when I was given the address, I went planning to be underwhelmed.
Within five minutes of arriving at Pages of Passion, I’d spotted Information Desk by Robyn Schiff and Ross Gay’s The Book of Delights, two wonderful but rather obscure titles, even within the neglected worlds of poetry and lyric nonfiction. The longer I browsed, the more I understood the space was special. A section devoted to diaspora and translated Vietnamese authors contains numerous works that Saigoneer has featured in our Loạt Soạt series, including Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai, Ocean Vuong, Nguyễn Ngọc Tư, Thi Bui and Phong Nguyen. Meanwhile, a wall in the back room is lined with classics, including personal favorites by Pessoa, Calvino, and Melville. Interspersed are books from current bestseller lists and those attracting attention on bookstagram feeds.
Still in disbelief that such a stellar bookstore existed in Saigon, I arranged a time to meet with owners Huy and Thảo to learn more about its origins.
The passionate couple behind the shop
Books can serve different purposes to different people. This is certainly true for the husband and wife couple hailing from Hanoi. “Growing up, my family struggled with finances,” Huy said. “So I came to books as a main source of self-education.” Beginning with old books borrowed from friends and family and the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, he transitioned to fiction and non-fiction titles. These works stood in for the expensive extra classes and language center courses his family couldn’t afford. Empowered by this independent reading, he won a scholarship to study abroad, where he majored in business and entrepreneurship. Upon returning to Vietnam, he entered that industry but never abandoned his love of reading.
Thảo’s history with books is different, but no less profound. Years ago, her family had moved to Saigon while she remained in Hanoi. To combat her loneliness, she turned to books. They were “companions during the ups and downs,” she said. As she “found meaning in the journey of healing myself,” she transitioned from fiction to spiritual and philosophical books. They led her to understand that “sometimes we want to have a deep look at ourselves, but cannot realize that self-reflection until we read it in a book.”
From home storage to physical space: Pages of Passion opens
Thảo would eventually move to Saigon and, like her husband, enter the corporate world where she worked for global FMCG corporations. While the pair found joy and comfort in reading in their free time, their work life was exhausting. After ten years, burnout was approaching, along with fatigue from laboring for other people’s visions and desires rather than making an impact in realms they value. Looking to their shared passion, they decided to go into business for themselves, selling books. In March 2024, Thảo and Huy opened Pages of Passion as an online store while remaining in their corporate positions. “We worked all day and spent our nights for books. I felt recharged when surrounded by the books we’re so in love with,” Thảo explained.
Thảo and Huy begin to order books from various local suppliers and vendors, taking comfort in the fact that if they didn’t sell, they could add them to their personal library and enjoy them themselves. However, they did find eager customers, allowing the couple to take the next step and open a physical location. “A lot of people asked us to have a physical bookstore and we thought it was time to do something fun, and at least, at the end of our lives, we could look back and be proud to have had a bookstore — a dream that we had from an early age.”
A fortuitous visit to a cafe in the same old apartment building introduced them to the available space that would open as Pages of Passion in late 2024. They both quit their jobs so they could staff the shop full-time, a sacrifice in many ways, including arousing concern amongst their parents who preferred a traditionally stable future. Running the shop is not easy, as at least one of them must be on the premises seven days a week from 10am to 10pm. In addition to assisting customers, ordering books and stocking shelves, they must keep up to date on publishing trends and research genres they are less familiar with while still finding time for the personal reading that rests at the core of the passion project.
More than just a bookstore
“It’s not like selling things in the market,” Thảo said. “We are offering more than books; more than just the physical objects, it's like an informal coaching session […] we are good listeners. We are not giving them every answer to their life, but at least we can open their hearts and share some part of ourselves,” she said of conversations with regular patrons. Huy adds that these relationships were not expected, intentional parts of the business, but he is proud they can offer more than purely transactional interactions. The pair often recognizes a part of themselves in their customers and can serve as experienced elder peers. “We have been through the same situations and can share our journey,” Thảo concluded.
These relationships are hardly one-way. In addition to appreciating genuine connections with their customers, the pair receives recommendations for books to read and stock. A few titles they pointed to on the shelves during Saigoneer’s visit had been suggested by customers and became personal favorites along the way. And while Thảo and Huy still take custom orders online, finding and shipping requested books, selling them in person is particularly gratifying. The exchange of recommendations, life stories, and ideas creates a warm, inviting atmosphere that feels more like a community than a simple place of commerce.
Given this interest in building community, it is no surprise that Pages of Passion aspires to host various events. Things are still in the brainstorming stage, though Thảo mentioned book clubs, movie nights featuring films based on novels, and times for silent reading. A poetry reading will take place at the end of June, the first of hopefully many opportunities for the city’s book lovers to gather in person and share their interest in literature.
Running a private bookshop, like reading literature, will always be a labor of love. Saigon residents and tourists should all be very excited that Pages of Passion has opened its doors. Anyone longing for a recommendation or simply the peace that comes with meeting like-minded individuals in a cozy space seemingly miles from the city’s noise and corporate chaos should set aside an afternoon to visit
Pages of Passion is located at L6, 35 Nguyễn Văn Tráng, Bến Thành Ward, D1, HCMC and can be contacted via Facebook or Instagram.
