5 comments about The Great Paris WalkPack.

1. I took four of the five tours in one weekend a few weeks ago and am looking forward to taking the fifth on my next visit. The directions are explicit and easy to follow, and the tours take you through paths you would not otherwise notice or uncover. I definitely got much more than I expected for $15.95!



2. At $15.95, this is an outrageous rip-off! The impressive-looking cover image looks like a book, but it only an envelope which contains five LEAFLETS! They look like the attraction-folders one sees around to be picked up for free. While the maps are clear, the points of interest listed are described in a few words or short sentences. You'll get abundantly more information with a book of guided walks. Don't get suckered in to this excessive price.



3. What a terrific way to learn about Paris -- by walking through its fascinating neighborhoods with an easy-to-carry, fold-out guide to what you are seeing, hearing, inhaling, and otherwise experiencing. The nice thing is that there is a separate guide for each of the five walks, so you aren't burdened by a heavy guide book. These walks are written by people who clearly love the city and know it well, and when I finished the walks, I felt that I had had a real insider's look at things. The text is lively and clear provides cultural anecdotes and interesting background information along with photos and facts. I can't imagine a more effective way to feel connected to a city. I only had time for two of the walks on my too-short visit to Paris and can't wait to get back and do the other three.



4. There aren't enough good things to say about The Great Paris Walkpack. We've done 4 of the 5 walks over the course of several trips to Paris. By using these pamphlets, we have transformed our experience from wandering aimlessly to making incredible discoveries at each turn. In the description of their Walkpack, the authors tell you that they've designed their pamphlets as the next best thing to being able to walk alongside you. There is no better description of what you will experience with these walks. The Howards are great company, leading you with absolute precision, making sure that you take in all the sights and sounds along each route without missing any of the details. They make sure you are fully immersed each step of the way. These pamphlets are a must have for anyone who wants to truly experience the beauty and depth of this incredible city.



5. Our family loved these tours! We had originally planned to do 2 or 3 of them but ended up doing them all because it became very clear that there is no better way to see this city. They are so simple and easy to follow that we let each of our kids play Tour Guide For A Day. And we loved the convenience of bringing only the foldout for that day's tour instead of lugging around heavy guidebooks. Worth every penny!

2 comments about Star-Spangled Eden: 19th Century America Through the Eyes of Dickens, Wilde, Frances Trollope, Frank Harris and Other British Travelers.

1. I loved Star-Spangled Eden. This well researched history reads like a historical romance. Simmons covers 50 of the most critical years of American History, 1830-1850, through the eyes of eight British men and women who came here, traveled widely, and had marvelous adventures. Each traveler plugs into a major theme of the era when the country developed from raw frontier to a modern industrial state and provides a unique perspective on important events of this period - the Southern slavery system, the Civil War, the exploration and settlement of the West, etc.

   My favorite chapter is the last one on Oscar Wilde's witty eleven-month cross-country American tour. To quote the author, "Here was the leading British snob, an effete poseur of highly refined sensibilities, lecturing American audiences from Boston to Leadville on the principles of aesthetics and becoming a popular celebrity in the process. Wilde found himself growing inordinately fond of Americans. A less unlikely love match could scarcely be imagined."

   Simmons writes great history-of-travel books. I first discovered him with Castaway in Paradise: The Incredible Adventures of True-Life Robinson Crusoes. I recommend these books to anyone looking for a great read that's based on fact.




2. In "Star Spangled Eden," James Simmons joins adventure story, mini-biography, and travelogue for a refreshing look at mid-19th century American history. He allows us to see through the eyes of British artists (Fanny Kemble) authors (Charles Dickens, Civil War reporter "Bull Run" Russell) and adventurers (Frank Harris, Richard Burton) trying to understand and succeed in a growing country just understanding itself.

   "Eden" touches on the seismic events between 1820-1890: slavery, the Civil War and reconstruction, taming of the American West, manifest destiny, the Chicago fire and the start of Mark Twain's "Gilded Age." But letters, newspaper stories, biographies and other first person period literature allow Simmons to show the humanity behind them even at its most graphic (Part II, covering "The Western Frontier," contains most of the book's goriest images.)

   You read of Dickens' "quarrel with America" over copyright infringement and Frances Trollope's disgust with perceived American misogyny, egalitarianism and even table manners. These resulted in two books causing national furor and turning American goodwill against their respective authors. (Several chapters repeat disgust with tobacco spittle and a savage American press.) Most notably, in Kemble's chapter, Simmons shows how America's shame of slavery tears a nation and family asunder.

   But each of Simmons' subjects is astounded at America's natural beauty (most notably west of the Mississippi) and earnestness even while complaining of crude manners or(as Oscar Wilde did wittily in the chapter on his American tour)aesthetics.

   Simmons allows some sense of closure when saying those gleaning the most from their American experience assimilated themselves best into it. This covered episodes from Wilde drinking American friends and rivals under the table to Burton and mountain man George Puxton adapting clothes, mannerisms and even speech from their new neighbors. This contrasts with Trollope and Dickens who,in Simmons words, "had no appreciation of America as a vigorous, expanding nation." Through his anecdotes, Simmons allows you to see American growing pains his characters often could not.

   Simmons' only misstep is forgiveable. In Wilde's chapter he tells of presidential assassin Charles Guiteau, whose trial and execution for shooting James Garfield becomes a media circus, prefacing celebrity trials even as he identifies Wilde as "the first modern celebrity...famous for being famous." You expect Simmons to make a larger point on Guiteau's perverse interpretation of what Wilde considered the art of his own life, but Simmons never quite does. (It would also have helped to read of Wilde's meeting fellow iconoclast Ambrose Bierce.)

   Regardless, Simmons succeeds at the aim of his acknowledgements. "With proper research and attention to the small details of place, action, and character," he writes, "formal history could be written to read as easily and effortlessly as the finest historical romance." Indeed, Simmons successfully wraps American hisory around his characters' adventures in "Star-Spangled Eden" (and includes a superb bibliography), making his an offbeat, informative and even reasssuring history lesson.

No comments about Best of Wainwright.

2 comments about An Englishman in Paris: L'education Continentale (Englishman series).

1. I was disappointed in this book although Michael Sadler has an impressive knowledge of France, French and the French and parts of the book are undoubtedly funny. Still, I felt the humor was too deliberate and over-the-top for my taste, not to mention a bit on the crude side. A heartfelt francophile, Mr. Sadler tracks a year-long sabbatical spent in Paris with the primary focuses of the book being his quest to bed a married Frenchwoman and his association with a neighborhood group of men who hang out at the local bar and periodically indulge in semi-clandestine meals consisting of unusual French dishes (pig ears, bull testicles, etc.). If the story about the married woman is to be believed as truth, there's an uncomfortable amount of kiss-and-tell, meant-to-be funny detail of their "courtship" and one 23-minute sexual encounter. The book also contains much extensive descriptions of food and drink and, unfortunately, the negative physical ramifications of his over-indulgences for the author. Much of the book is in or references French and, although he explains the majority of it, I doubt that I would have followed it all if I hadn't been living in Paris for some years myself. Not that it detracts, but the perspective is definitely British, not American, so some minor references might not mean much to an American.



2. A delightfully witty & engrossing book..hard to put down & full of the infinite nuances of French language & manners etc.I highly recommended it for any Francophile or accidental traveler.

3 comments about Naughty Paris: A Lady's Guide to the Sexy City.

1. After reading my recent copy of "Naughty Paris", I immediately purchased 5 copies for gifts !! It is rare to have such an insider's view of Paris. How could a tourist ever discover this special collection on their own? I travel to Paris several times each year and had never discovered most of the author's special places. The photography is beautiful and sensual, the text has you ready to jump on the next flight to Paris. I return to Paris in October and this book will definitely be in my suitcase ! The author even thought of the perfect size to easily fit in your handbag, available for reference. I started benefiting even while at home and ordered several of her suggested French movies and books.



2. My husband and I were in Paris this weekend celebrating our first year anniversary. We were having a good time in Paris, but after we discovered "Naughty Paris" our experience was richly enhanced. The book is engaging and very relevant to today's modern woman and even today's modern couple. The restaurant recommendations are romantic and cozy, and the cabaret recommendations deliver. Very tastefully done...Fantastic!



3. Naughty Paris is exactly what I expected: wonderful! I have spent a lot of time in Paris, and I thought I knew the city well, but Heather has introduced to me to all sorts of new places. She has even given me a new perspective on some old favourites. I am off to Paris again on Friday with an already well-worn copy of this book, knowing I will not be disappointed by any of Heather's suggestions and hints!!

No comments about Memoirs Of David Nasmith: His Labors And Travels In Great Britain, France, The United States, And Canada (1844).

1 comments about Picasso's Paris: Walking Tours of the Artist's Life in the City.

1. This book contains many Picasso photographs at various stages of his life in Paris (before he moved to Vallauris). Did you know this revolutionary artist spent a great part of his life in a very "typical" flat of the most "bourgeois" district of Paris (8th arrondissement)? Paintings are displayed both along a geographical and a chronological perspective which is a refreshing and appropriate approach for such a book. This guide is practical, full of facts. You will like it.

No comments about Rome at Your Door (Culture Shock! At Your Door: A Survival Guide to Customs & Etiquette).

5 comments about Something to Declare: Essays on France and French Culture.

1. "Something to Declare" is a clever title for a book about travel abroad; but, beyond its opening pages, that's not what this book is about. "Essays on France" is an equally misleading subtitle, for the book's erudite essays (beyond the opening chapter) are not on France but on a narrow selection of French writers and related movers and shakers, and one fictional character: Madame Bovary. After a fast-paced, dazzling opening sequence, hilariously describing the teen-aged Barnes' first encounters across the English Channel, we slow down to pick through some highlights in the lives of some of the top French authors, poets, filmmakers and other cultural icons, eventually easing to a crawl through exhaustive detail regarding the author's main interest, Flaubert and his world. If Madame Bovary is your cup of tea, you may enjoy steeping yourself further in Barnes. For me it was just too much.



2. Barnes's collection falls into two halves. The first is a collection of pieces that might be said to have a French theme: a review and appreciation of Edith Wharton's account of a car journey taken through France, a piece of French songsters of the sixties, a very entertaining look at the perils of the Tour de France. The second half is nearly all given over to Flaubert, Barnes's obsession. The essays on the great writer are fascinating, especially those centered around his correspondence. Barnes's love for the writer and the man is contagious. I had no great enthusiasm for Flaubert, despite having loved Barnes's 'Flaubert's Parrot', but since reading this book I have read 'Madame Bovary' with a great deal of pleasure and have begun looking into the correspondence. All the essays are scrupulously and stylishly written and are worth reading for the prose alone.



3. Firstly, I did not gather all this book had to offer, as I do not have the knowledge that Mr. Barnes requires regarding French popular music of decades ago, including Georges Brassens, Boris Vian and Jacques Brel, and other topics that can only be fully appreciated if you have previous knowledge of them. Another example is his detailed discussion of French Cinema, again, hard to appreciate fully without prior and extensive knowledge. As a testament to his writing skill and style, these barriers did not keep me from reading every bit of this book. Unfortunately I had to read many parts as a novice, but his talent as a writer makes that effort an easy one to make.

   There are many essays that will appeal to a wide audience, Edith Wharton, the Tour de France, Henry James, and his discourses on the writers George Sand, Victor Hugo, Stephane Mallarme, and Ivan Turgenev. No book such as this by Mr. Barnes would even be contemplated without a large portion being devoted to Gustave Flaubert, his friends, his actions, and the world he lived in and created. Flaubert is the basis for Mr. Barnes to explore the role of biography, the selective use of historical fact, personal papers, and the revisionist methods that can be employed when even identical source material is used to document the same individual. When Mr. Barnes makes an appearance in the book it is a picture of him standing by the final resting place of his much loved topic, the final resting place of Flaubert.

   The topics I mention are not even close to an exhaustive list of the material that is covered. I have read virtually all of the books and essays that Mr. Barnes has published, and this book is decidedly unique. The book falls short of 300 pages only because the author chose to keep it dense. A slightly more verbose pen could easily have doubled the size of the book. You will likely spend more time on these 279 pages than you generally do, whether with Mr. Barnes or another author.

   A very different book from a brilliant mind and very talented observer and writer, just be prepared for a very new experience from him this time around. He has not taken his readers on a trip like this before.




4. The title of this book, as you can see, is "Something To Declare: Essays on France and French Culture." The blurbs on the back of my trade paperback version enthusiastically support this title. However, only a quarter of the pages of this book are devoted to a discussion of "France and French culture." The rest are spent on the very specific topics of particular French artists and authors, most particularly Flaubert and things related to Flaubert. Given that artists and authors often make a point of setting themselves apart from their cultural milieu (especially most if not all of the ones Barnes writes about) and are often, at a minimum, a bit out of touch with the reality of the world around them, writings on these folks can hardly be deemed to reflect "French culture," as promised by the title. Barnes is, of course, perfectly entitled to publish a book composed of these elements; however, it would be nice if the title and blurbs made it clearer that that is what he is doing, for those of us poor unenlightened souls who do not go into a swoon every time we see or hear the name Flaubert -- for those of us who, in fact, would be perfectly happy for the rest of our lives if we could avoid anything more than infrequent passing references to Flaubert. Simply put, the title does not fairly represent the major part of what is in the book. If you are looking for a book on France and French culture, you can do much, much better with your reading time and money. Moreover, the essays that are not general in nature assume an intimate, detailed knowledge of Flaubert and his writing. If you do not have such an intimate, ready-at-your-fingertips, working knowledge, you will often not know what Barnes is referring to and will consequently have no hope of understanding the point he is trying to make, even if you hang in there and read the whole thing, as I did. These essays are intended for an audience of initiates; reading them in a book like this that purports to address a much more general topic will just leave you feeling like an outsider to the club. Oh, and it will be even worse for you if you fail to hold the belief that "Madame Bovary" is worth intense worship as one of the greatest things to ever have come along, both before and after the advent of sliced bread.



5. Julian Barnes is probably the British writer most associated with French influence over his literature. Most of his novels are influenced by France in one way or another, especially his acclaimed 1984 masterpiece, Flaubert's Parrot.
   
   In the introduction to these essays, Barnes traces his personal affiliation with France. From nervous childhood holidays with his parents, to his immersion in French language and culture while studying Languages at Oxford, ending with a 1997 trip across the Channel to deliver the ashes of his parents. He cheerfully admits a bias towards French culture over his native Anglo-Saxon and this fact permeates the essays here.
   
   The first part of the book features a range of essays on obscure French singers, the film director Francois Truffaut, Elizabeth David's cookery writing and, best of all, a lenghty piece on drug taking in the Tour de France.
   
   In the second half of the book, the emphasis shifts to Flaubert, Barnes's self professed literary idol. The essays span the full range of Flaubert's life and his associations: his biographers, his mistresses, his relationship with other writers and film versions of Madame Bovary. Flaubert was given extensive fictional treatment in 'Flaubert's Parrot' and these pieces perhaps read like a reworking of the research notes for that novel.
   
   Unlike most wannabe British continentals who think that to become au fait with European Culture one just has to eat at The River Cafe and take the occasional jaunt to Paris or Rome, Barnes has clearly read many pages of French literature and watched many metres of film. His depth and range of knowledge is impressive and the style is (as with all Barnes's writings) erudite, crisp and piercingly intelligent.

No comments about London Above Eye Level: Glimpses of the Unexpected.