Paris to the Past

Paris to the Past:  Traveling Through French History by Train by Ina Caro

Published:  2011 by W.W. Norton

Source:  Borrowed from the library

  Either books about Paris and/or France are more prevalent on my radar because I'm contemplating a trip in the spring, or the publishing gods are releasing more books about them.  I'm drawn to travel narratives anyways, but even so I think this is the third or fourth new book about Paris that I've read this year.

 

  This book details 25 day trips from Paris that take you back into French history -- from The Middle Ages and the era of Louis XIV to the French Revolution and the age of Napoleon.  I admit, I don't have a real affinity for any of these periods and would not necessarily have selected a lot of these sites as a "must-see. Having said that, one of the sites mentioned -- The Place des Vosges in Paris -- was one of my favorite spots when I last visited and I wasn't entirely aware of of its significance.  Another site -- the cathedral at Rouen -- I only know from Monet's paintings (reason itself to visit, in my opinion), but I did not know of its connection to Joan of Arc.  *sigh*  I might need a longer vacation.

  I found the author's tone to be too upscale and a tad snobby for my taste, and the only restaurants/hotels she does mention are certainly not for the budget-minded traveller.  Otherwise, this is a good non-touristy travel guide that is a starting point for anyone planning a Parisian adventure.

  Recommended.

The Most Beautiful Walk in the World

The Most Beautiful Walk in the World:  A Pedestrian in Paris by John Baxter

Published:  2011 by Harper Perennial

Source:  Received from the publisher for review

Paris belongs to its piétons – the pedestrians



   Regular readers of this blog, tell me:  is there any doubt as to what I think of this book?

   It's about Paris.  About walking in Paris.  About viewing the history of Paris on these walks through the eyes of some of the writers and other cultural luminaries who made their mark in the city:  Hemingway, Picasso, Sylvia Beach, to name just a few.  It's a book written by a Parisian resident who,  I think because he is not a native of the city,  still has a bit of the tourist in him to be able to express his wide-eyed admiration of the city and all that has happened to it.
 
  That's not to say that the book is all sunshine and roses about the city -- Baxter describes a few incidents typical of life probably anywhere, but for me, since they take place in PARIS, they seem so much more bearable. 

  Although not really a travel guide, for those interested in visiting Paris for the first or fortieth time is full of information disguised as narratives that would only enhance the experience;   my copy is covered in Post-It flags and highlighted throughout so that WHEN I can plan my next trip I will have new resources available to me.  Even for the armchair traveller, though, this book is simply a wonderful escape into one of the world's great cities.

  Highly recommended. 

  I also recommend another John Baxter memoir set in Paris:  Immoveable Feast:  A Paris Christmas; an account of his attempt to prepare a traditional French Christmas meal for his French in-laws.  A wonderful holiday read.

French Lessons by Ellen Sussman

French Lessons by Ellen Sussman

Published:  2011 by Ballantine Books

Source:  Received from publisher for review

  Regular visitors to this blog know that I have an affinity for Paris.  When I was offered the chance to review the novel, French Lessons, with its premise of three Americans seeing Paris and learning French, I jumped at it and couldn't wait to fall in love with the story.

  Alas, this love was not meant to be.

  Instead of a novel about learning French and experiencing the life of a Parisian, I found a novel about a woman unable to get over the death of her (married) lover, an expat wife seemingly wishing she were anywhere else but Paris (I know -- really?) and a man uncomfortable with the celebrity lifestyle of his actress wife; in addition to the troubles of their French tutors .  While not a problem, necessarily, it just was not the story I was looking for.  I wanted to experience Paris with these people, seeing how or if the French language practice enhanced it for them. 

  For what it is, I guess it is not a bad novel, it just was not for me.  However, it did make me want to look into hiring a French tutor the next time I visit Paris, so something good did come out of it after all.

Another Reason Why I Want to Improve my French Skills

  A weekly program on network discussing books and literature, La Grande Librairie  (The Large Bookstore) is my dream television show.  I've only seen two episodes so far (I just included this channel in my cable package to improve my French) but it is wonderful.  On each show four authors are profiled; of course most of them are French but Nicole Krauss was also featured; they also profile a bookstore in France and when I visit I am starting a list of places to browse.

  The version I'm seeing is subtitled, so I can follow along and hopefully in the future can just listen to the conversation.  But since the topic of the show interests me immensely, I feel I am making more of an effort to comprehend.  Oh, and I've added a few books to my to-read pile; ideally I'll read them in French or else I'll eagerly await translations.

  And by the way, why can't there be programs like this on American television?  There surely would be an audience for this type of show? 

Paris Was Ours -- Review and Giveaway!

Paris Was Ours:  Thirty-Two Writers Reflect on the City of Light, edited by Penelope Rowlands

Published:  2011 by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill

Source:  Purchased a copy, won a copy

  I have only had the good fortune to visit Paris once, for a brief 5 day visit, and I loved it.  I did the tourist-y things -- The Louvre, The Eiffel Tower, etc., but one of the greatest pleasures was just walking along the streets and enjoying whatever unexpected experience I encountered. (I remember one Sunday afternoon spending an hour or so in The Place des Vosges - a park in the Marais district - and felt like I was in Heaven).

  So Paris Was Ours was an essential purchase for me when it was published.  This collection of 32 essays is not about tourist Paris but about living in Paris (at different periods in recent history); and while the essays reinforce in Francophiles like me the greatness of Paris, they also show the not-so-pretty aspects of the city.   And while Paris is by no means the perfect place, its flaws do not seem to prevent these writers from staying there for an extended period time - if not permanently - or visiting again and again.

  Very few of the contributors of this collection were familiar to me (David Sedaris and Diane Johnson were the only names I recognized), but despite this I read each essay with my limited experience of Paris in mind and after finishing the book it was all I could do to not book myself an immediate flight (I'm hoping to visit Paris at the end of the year, but it's still in the wishing stage).

  And I loved this book so much I found myself with two copies!  I purchased the book on my own, but a few weeks ago I also won a copy courtesy of Wonders and Marvels, a really interesting and entertaining history blog.  So I'd like to send my extra copy to an interested reader.  Simply comment below (with an e-mail address, please) and for my own curiosity, tell me something that you like about Paris.  The giveaway is open internationally, and I will randomly select the winner on Monday, April 25. 

Highly recommended.

Literary Blog Hop March 17-20

  The Literary Blog Hop is hosted at The Blue Bookcase.  This week's question:

What one literary work must you read before you die?

 

  If you could see my bookshelves, I have a lot of books that I want to read before I die (there are so many that my husband jokes that I'll die first).  Whether any of them are "must" reads might be open to interpretation, though; normally if there is I book I am eager to read I do so right away.

 

  What I would like to do, though, is take a novel I've enjoyed - Les Miserables or The Elegance of the Hedgehog, for example - and be able to read, understand, and enjoy it in French.  As I'm refreshing my skills in the language I've started reading small pieces -- magazine articles mostly, as well as some stuff on the Internet -- but I have some work to do before I can be comfortable reading a complete novel.  However, once I do have more confidence in my ability I think that the familiarity I have with these stories will be a great help WHEN I tackle them in their original language.

  And then when that's done I can start accumulating books in a second language!  My husband will be so thrilled........

  What work is on your literary bucket list?

A Man in Uniform

A Man in Uniform by Kate Taylor

Published:  2010 by Crown Publishers

Source:  Borrowed from the library



  Francois Dubon is a relatively successful lawyer in Paris, has a wife with the "right" social connections, and a mistress on the side.  One day, a woman in widow's mourning comes into his office and, acting on behalf of a "friend", asks him to prove the innocence of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a French military officer (who is Jewish) convicted and imprisoned for espionage.

  The Dreyfus Affair, as it is known, is one of the most scandalous events in France's history.  Mixing real-life personalities with her characters, Kate Taylor has created a suspenseful novel about events in the latter stage of this period; so that even though we know how events really turn out, the reader isn't always quite sure if Dreyfus will be exonerated.

  Once again I loved the descriptions of Paris -- this time of the late 1800s -- and enjoyed learning more about this period of France's history and how it affected life and society during that time.

Recommended.

The Paris Wife

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

Published:  2011 by Ballantine Books

Source:  Advance Copy received from the publisher

  First of all, a confession:  I have never thought I would like Ernest Hemingway.  I think I read one or two of his books long ago but I didn't get anything out of them; and he has always struck me as a macho guy without anything to say that would be relevant to me.

  That might still be true, but after reading The Paris Wife, I am willing to try him again.  This novel is not about Hemingway himself so much as it is about his first wife, Hadley.  The two met in Chicago in 1920 and after their marriage, they moved to Paris where Hemingway struggled with his writing and Hadley gave him the time and space he needed.  Their marriage was by no means ideal and who knows if it would have fared any different if they remained in the United States, but this novel portrays Hadley for the most part as a woman standing by her man through thick and thin, despite the effects on her own aspirations and well-being.  That is not to say she was a weak woman; despite her love and loyalty to Hemingway she did very well standing up to him.

  Of course, as a francophile I also loved the descriptions of 1920s Paris, and the atmosphere of that era really came through.  And the description of Hemingway's writing process - especially the genesis of the novel The Sun Also Rises has made me want to read this book and see if my attitude toward his writing has changed.

  Recommended

  

The Diving Bell and The Butterfly

The Diving Bell and The Butterfly by Jean-Dominque Bauby (translated by Jeremy Leggatt)

Published:  1998 by Vintage International

Source:  Borrowed from the library

  In my ongoing attempt to learn French, I have started to watch French movies (still with the English subtitles - I'm not that fluent yet!) and one that I enjoyed recently was The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, the story of Jean-Dominique Bauby.  After watching the movie, I felt I needed to seek out the book upon which the movie was based (I'd like to try reading it in French, but for now I read the English translation).

  Jean-Dominique Bauby was the editor of Elle magazine in France when at the young age of 43 he suffered a massive stroke.  While his mind was not affected, his body - except for one eyelid - was left completely paralyzed; this condition is colloquially known as "locked-in" syndrome. 

  One of his therapists devised a method of communication where one would read him the letters of the alphabet in the order of their frequence of use and Bauby would blink his eye when the correct letter was reached.  This is how Bauby "wrote" this memoir - memorizing what he wanted to say, then dictating it to the transcriber.

  I use the term memoir to describe this book but I'm not sure if it is correct.  It seems rather to be a collection of vignettes of his "locked-in" life and the language he uses is incredibly vivid:

My dving bell becomes less oppressive, and my mind takes flight like a butterfly.  There is so much to do.  You can wander off in space or in time, set out for Tierra del Fuego or for King Midas's court.

You can visit the woman you love, slide down beside her and stroke her still-sleeping face.  You can build castles in Spain, steal the Golden Fleece, discover Atlantis, realize your childhood dreams and adult ambitions.

And, in describing a visit to the seaside near his hospital with some of his caretakers who find the smell terrible around the shacks on the beach:

But I never tire of the smell of french fries.

The book is not long - about 130 pages - but it is full of inspiration and should make one appreciate their own life a little bit more.

Recommended.



Five Quarters of the Orange

Five Quarters of the Orange by Joanne Harris

Published:  2007 by Harper Perennial

Source:  Purchased

  Framboise Simon returns to the village of her childhood to live in her family's farm and with the recipes of her mother is able to create a successful restaurant.  What the residents don't know is Framboise's link to the town and she would like to keep it that way.

  The story is told at two different periods -- in the present, where Framboise works to keep to herself while her nephew and his wife attempt to coerce her into giving them the recipes Framboise's mother passed on to her for use in their own restaurant; and during the war, where Framboise continually battles with her mother and makes friends with a German soldier in the area.  The narrative seems rather seamless and to me shows once again how much the past has an effect on the present.

  And although I didn't really get a true feeling for most of the characters, I both loved and hated Framboise.  As a child, she really was rather cruel to her mother -- triggering her migraines so that she could take off to the town with her older siblings, for example -- but at the same time as an adult she was strong and feisty and stood up to her nephew's efforts to ruin her business.

  For someone like me who is interested in both World War II and in French history/culture I enjoyed this book very much. 

  I have read this book for the "book with a number in the title" selection of the What's in a Name 4 Reading Challenge.
 

And the Show Went On

  And the Show Went On:  Cultural Life in Nazi-Occupied Paris by Alan Riding

Published:  2010 by Alfred A. Knopf

Source:  Purchased (e-book)



   Since I started studying French again in September, I have become more of a Francophile than ever.  I'm dipping my toes into reading books in French, but they are a challenge; so I will content myself for now with English translations and accounts of life in France and in the process add books to my French to-read list (giving me that much more motivation to keep studying the language!)

   As I am also (bizarrely) fascinated with events in World War II, the book And the Show Went On was an instant purchase for me when I heard about it.  Alan Riding takes us to Paris before, during and after the war and provides a look at how culture - theater, film, dance, art, music and literature - reacted to the invasion and subsequent occupation.

   The culture of Paris may have slowed down during the war, but by no means did it stop.  Despite having to report to German censors, artists of all forms were rather productive during this period and also managed to include subtle hints of resistance in their work.

   Surprisingly (to me, anyway) there seemed to be a fair amount of both resistance and "collaborationist" activities within the cultural communities, though Riding does make the point that some of those indicted for collaboration at the end of the war - were only doing their job to provide for their families and had no malicious intent at all, not unlike French factory workers forced into producing equipment for the German army.

   Although I'm not entirely familiar with a lot of their work, many of the artists discussed -- Picasso, Edith Piaf, Sartre, Colette, for example -- are names I know and hope to experience (read, see, hear) what they produced during this period.  Others, such as Marguerite Duras (writer) and Montherlant (playwright) are new discoveries.

   The war is, of course, central to this book; and as such its major effects (especially the persecution of Jews) cannot be ignored. However, it is interesting to see how a country (well, more specifically the city of Paris) is able to keep a creative pulse despite the hardship and repression that the occupation forced upon them.