France Books

Paris in the Sixties - the last days of the Bohemian Paris of Joyce, Hemingway and the Left Bank. Soon the reaction to the student revolution of 1968 will lead to a conservative backlash and to a modernised, suburbanised Paris, but as yet it is still an escape from the cultural deserts of Australia and Northern England. A young couple are living on meagre earnings from teaching English in a run-down language institute; in their spare time Jane paints, Tom writes poetry. Their apartment, it turns out, has a direct connection to the rat-infested sewers of the city, but they are happy with their alternative lifestyle until they invite an unusual, but fascinating person to live with them. They are then made to realise what a really alternative lifestyle means. Are Tom and Jane a match or a mismatch? The novel, while showing the bitter-sweet quality of the young couple's relationship and giving a nostalgic picture of a now-vanished Paris, is full of comic episodes, notably the description of the language school and of the adventures of Sally, the couple's wild friend.

If you have visited Paris and loved it you will love this book. Its delicious weaving of the sights, smells, tastes and texture of Paris in the 1960's quickly gets you in and you are hooked.

Here you meet the principal characters, Tom, a truculent Englishman and his new wife Jane, an Australian girl from a far distant and contrastingly naive world of gum trees and koalas who have arrived to stake a claim at the fringes of the capital of culture.

Jane's heart sinks when she hears another Australian accent as Sally washes up in Paris and breaks in on her bohemian world. Tom, a confirmed "leg man" (its the implications of legs that attracts him)has to revise his scientifically precise scale of perfection to accommodate the "implications" of the beautiful new arrival.

How Tom and Jane end up getting both rather more and rather less than they bargained for in this triangle is the twist here and as they do so they learn a lesson in worldliness and win the reader's affection.

It is a great book for travellers (which by definition includes most Australians), those who are interested in the Paris of Sartre and anyone who likes a story about self discovery.

I loved this book! Vibrant, warm, clever, subtle, fabulous characterization, great atmosphere -- I felt like I'd lived in bohemian 60s Paris just through reading it. Her compassionate portrayal of these complex characters makes for a rewarding and sustaining read: you have to admire the author's skill at giving such lyrical and realistic expression to this all-too-human couple's dilemmas. Patricia Page allows the reader to see the world from the inside out, her manipulation of characters is so subtle as to be almost invisible. A particularly fine achievement for a first-time writer. The story involved, enthralled, delighted me -- and it was only long after I put it down that the magic dispelled, and I could realise fully Page's skill. Highly recommended. It'll make you think twice about wearing a skirt.

To know Jean Cocteau, visit the chapels, tombs & monuments he left for posterity, or watch his films. If you can't, read this book.

I originally picked this book up at the library and liked it so much I bought two copies: One for myself and one for a friend. This is a wonderful biography of one of the most influential men of the Arts in France. Since I don't live in France, or Paris to be exact since his influence would have been felt there the most, I don't know if forty years after his death he still influences the Arts or not. However, he was a force to be reckoned with during his lifetime and this bio gives the reader a great sense of what Paris was like from the late 1800's to the early 1960's. Fascinating.

Cocteau seems to turn up in most unusual places. First he is praised by no less a figure than Edith Wharton, then he is hobnobbing with Proust, then off with Picasso, Diagalev, Stravinsky, and the Ballets Russes set, finally he is a film maker of the live action film of Beauty and the Beast. In between his life was filled with more living than should be allowed by law. Steegmuller's biography does justice to this life and probably will remain the definative text on the subject.

I don't usually understand 'feminist' readings, but this book is a real exception. It is so poetically written, and it is really more about autobiography than it is about the author in the title. But it made me want to read Colette, and convinced me that she should be taken seriously, as more than the author of "Gigi". Flieger real knows her stuff. This is a keeper, for both theory mavens and literature buffs. Check it out!

This is a very critically insightful and readable book, a must for students of autobiography. It is as much about Freudian theory as about Colette. It shows how even when autobiographers 'tell the truth' it is never 'nothing but the truth' or 'the whole truth'. Also very poetic

This is an excellent psychoanalytic treatment of autobiography as an effect of the "mourning-work", with a highly original reading of Colette's own "fictionalization" of the events of her life. Highly recommended for students of psychoanalysis and women's studies.

I am studying Interior Design...and this book is great! It is easy to read and very helpful!

I own about 25 books on interior design and home decoration. This is certainly in my top three, and probably the most oft consulted of them all. Each chapter covers one of the basic colours, from green and blue through to pinks and neutrals. But after this sparse description it is hard to convey the beauty and depth of this book. When I say cover a colour, I mean really explore it. It's cool version, warm version, soft, light, borderline with its neighbouring colour on the colour wheel.

And the way that each colour is covered is unique. Very minimal (but useful) text, and instead full page pictures of utterly inspiring interiors featuring the colour tone/intensity on each and every page. It uses excellent photographs from a wide and rich range of interior design. All true to life from real (moderna and historical) homes - and usually illustrating a good marriage between a particular colour/shade and the style it most compliments. Going through it, one soon becomes aware of one's taste. The pictures are so good - so evocative of the theme of that particular colour - that one has a simple emotional response of things like "love", "comforting", "not me", "does nothing for me", "joyful", etc. Using this book and trusting my visceral response to the delightful, subtle shades on each page, I virtually decorated my whole house.

A very sophisticated book on colour, that speaks to us in the most simple of ways - through the eye to the heart.

This book has many traditional rooms, but because it is not new, the "contemporary" rooms tend to look a little dated now. Funny how the old days look better than the recent past. What set it apart for me was the text, which discusses the history of color in decoration and is extremely interesting without being long, and the information on pigment reactions in making ones own paint. She includes several pages of different pigments mixed together in the back, as well as a discussion of different wall painting mediums. As a painter making my own lime wash, this book, while not a complete reference, gave a few invaluable details that made my project a success, and I really only bought it to see the photos of rooms in different colors.

Anthony Kemp, author and military historian, wrote the Foreword to "The Command is Forward." He called the book "- - an immensely detailed and honest - -" work on WW II and the role of the infantryman. Kemp's works include several books on the Lorraine Campaign, particularly those on the battle for Metz in late 1944.

The book "The Command Is Forward" has been an incredible journey for me to take back through those days with my father. He and I each have a book and we are reading and discussing it over the phone. Last weekend he told me that the book made him cry. I have never seen my father cry. The division make-up was an incredible construct of college students, National Guard cadre and filler personnel. If you want to know what it feels like to go into combat as a green private lead by green officers and NCOs and facing a seasoned Panzer division you will never come any closer to the real experience then this book. Read it or miss one of the most important pieces of literature to come out of WWII. This book is one of the greatest gifts I have ever received and I owe Jim a debt that I will never be able to pay.

I expected to find this book interesting because I fought in this campaign. I was a sniper in the 26th Division of Patton's Third Army. But I never dreamed I would find so much information. Information I had been searching for. Like, for instance, what happened to my squad leader and the remnants of my squad after they left me wounded on the foot of Hill 310. I found that information, and lots more, in "The Command Is Forward."
I not only found a daily diary kept by our regiment for every day of the campaign. I found similar records kept by the German outfits we were fighting. And I found comments from the German commanders as to what they had expected from our division. And what they got.
I have filled my book with highlighting marks, and I often just go back and review those highlighted parts. Most are very personal. Anyone who fought in Europe, especially in the 26th Division or the Third Army should have this book, and so should any relatives or descendants of such veterans.
Try it. You will be as pleased as I was.

This book contains spectacular photography through-out: both photos that highlight the artistry of finished works and the close-up, clear, work-in-progress photos that highlight techniques for successful projects. Accompanying text is very readable, and contains a wealth of information about pebble mosaics. I bought the book for the photographs, but was also fascinated by the information about the people and communities that came together to create stunning mosaics to enhance public spaces in their towns.

Good overview of pebble mosaics with very helpful information on materials and techniques. The book also has good examples of works by professional mosaicists in the field of pebblework.

Maggy Howarth's COMPLETE PEBBLE MOSAIC HANDBOOK provides a review of pebble mosaics which can be used in gardens, patios and public places. Artists, landscapers, and any with a special interest in the design qualities of these mosaics will find this a beautiful collection which not only provides step-by-step insights, but includes a survey of traditional works by contemporary pebble mosaic artists.

This book may be helpful for every person interested in the French Revolution. It shows a "reactionary" vision of the Revolution, and describes all the human right violations done by the revolutionaries. In de Maistre's view, the French Revolution is a divine punishment for France. France had not follow its special vocation: to be a stronghold of the christian faith, and therefore came the Revolution. Perhaps the most interesting thing is that all De Maistre's predictions became true, specially the Restauration of Monarchy. Most books about the French Revolution are pure apologies. If you want to read something very different, read this book.

Joseph de Maistre is one of the harshest counter-revolutionary critics of the French Revolution. He calls for a return to traditional Catholicism and the Restoration of the monarchy. The book _Considerations on France_ takes a look at his arguments for that tradition and his understanding of the dark side of human existence through his unique Christian perspective. De Maistre was both a Freemason and a Roman Catholic, an arch-conservative traditionalist, and a strong believer in the primacy of papal authority in the secular and spiritual realms. In this book, he criticizes those eighteenth century philosophers and their belief in progress and the "social contract" ideal. He explains why the traditional development of society is more appropriate, given the rootedness of man in sin. This is an important work to understand the thought of De Maistre, a Catholic reactionary.

The Frenchman Joseph de Maistre published this counter-revolutionary political manifesto, _Considerations on France_, as a protest against the chaos unleashed on Europe following the French Revolution. De Maistre is credited for setting the tone for the conservative, pro-monarchist political right in Catholic and Continental Europe for the subsequent ninetieth century, as a sort of French contemporary of the esteemed British conservative, Edmund Burke. De Maistre glorifies war and violence as rooted in mankind's primordial fall from divine grace. De Maistre even goes so far as to view the executioner and the soldier as human agents of divine wrath against those who transgress the higher realm. Attempts to improve the human condition through revolutionary politics and high-blown rhetoric regarding "democracy" and "equality" are cursed to fail. These revolutionary movements will only collapse because of their disconnection with reality and their inability to comprehend the dark side of human nature. Instead, political change must be brought about through a gradual process. Traditions that go beyond human memory into the obscure mists of history have a quality of the a-rational, or the divine, about them. The sacred altar and the crown may be defended by force if necessary. It is curious that de Maistre, writing in the 1790s and early 1800s, predicted the restoration of the Bourbon family to the French monarchy after the military defeat of Napoleon.

This is one of our family's favorite books. My 2 yr old and 8 yr old love it equally. The words will often go over a preschooler's head (haunches, slip-shod hoofs, etc) but they will enjoy the funny storyline and amazing illustrations nonetheless. I never tire of it too, esp because there is always more detail to find and smile about in the illustrations. I esp love the part of the story about the people who take the place of the cows out in the pastures... how they like to stand in small groups, saying nothing and chewing grass, and they have to be prodded too get back on the train. I give this book often as a gift and always get great feedback on it. Good stuff!

My five-year-old son and I have had great fun with this book for years. The gentle prose is great for reading aloud, and the illustrations, with their many fine-art allusions--to Manet, Seurat, and others--introduce children to cultural heritage in a non-preachy way.

A joyous book that will make kids and adults laugh

A great read and it has tasty easy to make recipies. What more can you want, except to actualy be in France?

My husband and I and another couple travelled with Kate Ratliffe for a week on the Garonne Canalin her barge, the Julia Hoyt. The book describes both the journey and the wonderful food on board. If you buy the book you'll want to take the trip and if you take the trip you'll want to buy the book! Her 800 number is in the back of the book

I first picked this up at my library, expecting another in the growing genre of "lifestyle fantasy literature" -- you know, bohemian boomer quits rat race, goes abroad, buys quaint house (or boat), creates rustic & soul-satisfying alternative lifestyle and then =tortures= the rest of us by writing a glowing book about it... But now, Ratliffe's work is in a hallowed place on my cookbook shelf between Richard Olney's "Simple French Food" and "Lulu's Provencal Table." Like those books, Ratliffe's takes us deep into the heart (and soul) of a regional French cuisine, through timeless villages and fragrant home kitchens. Even if the book were recipes alone, it would be worth its price for the seasonal simplicity of "asparagus with scallions, mint and green garlic shoots," or "radish leaf soup." But Ten Speed Press has made it a feast for the hand and eye as well, with loving photos of the Garonne canal country and buff paper reminiscent of a sketchbook or travel journal. Few chefs write this well about the daily meditation of cooking, the inspirations, the happy accidents and the patiently learned techniques. Even if you never spend a night on the "Julia Hoyt," by the time you cook your way to "Flan au Floc" for dessert you'll feel you know this land and its people intimately.

Swartz has done a masterful job in bringing Bourdieu's complicated thought and style to an Anglo-American readership. But he has gone even further in demonstrating the ways in which Bourdieu's work is problematic and/or falls short. Truly, a remarkable work of sythesis, scholarship, and critique.

If you need to learn about Pierre Bourdieu, this book is fantastic! I had to read this book for a class, but it was one of the most clear, thought-provoking, and understandable syntheses of a theorist's works that I've ever read. If only such a book existed for Foucault or any of the other theorists and philosophers that I've had to struggle through, only understanding half of it! After reading this book, I feel that I actually, clearly understand the theory of Bourdieu.

This is a great way to get acquainted with Bourdieu's work on culture and power. Swartz provides an excellent overview of key concepts such as "symbolic capital", "habitus", "field" and "symbolic violence". This work definitely makes Bourdieu more readable, but it is no mere Cliff Notes -- there is a critical and analytical component to Swartz' treatise that invites the reader to not just take the given theories at face value but examine past criticisms these theories have drawn.

This is essential reading for sociology grad students and anyone looking for a comprehensive and comprehensible introduction to Bourdieu's scholarship. Bourdieu's own work is brilliant but is not easy reading. Swartz eases the reader into Bourdieu's world of thought, and once you are hooked, reading Bourdieu himself becomes worth the trouble.