1 comments about Pocket Map and Guide Paris (EYEWITNESS TRAVEL GUIDE).

1. comprehensive and very conveniently small guide to be easily carried in pocket or purse--this is the perfect Paris companion!

5 comments about Between Meals: An Appetite for Paris.

1. Before purchasing this book, I read all the customer comments which gave nothing but praise. I just don't get it. I wish one of the reviewers would have given me tips on how to stay awake while plodding through each sentence/paragraph, along with where to find a single nugget in these pages worth remembering. Okay, I'll probably always wonder how the author's love of boxing was deemed worth inclusion, but then I wonder why the entire book was printed. I feel suckered! And can't think of anything to recommend this book. My advice is to spend your money on ANYTHING written by M.F.K. Fisher, "The Tummy Trilogy" by Calvin Trillin or "Blue Trout and Black Truffles" by Joseph Wechsberg for much more pleasurable reading.



2. This is a fantastic book, but if you've never cracked The New Yorker open before, you might not like the style. Very in the moment and tongue in cheek, Liebling is a master wordsmith leaving no offense done to him by the onset of modernity unheckled. Some of the greatest tidbits come when he derrides the famous Michelin Star rating system for French restaurants, now a standard that chefs have literally killed themselves over - Liebling reminds you that its just a rating from a TIRE manufacturer and that he feels it marked the decline of real French cooking.
   
   I read passages of this book out loud to friends and family, most notably the ones dealing with the immense amounts of food, and always got a laugh. This is not a book dealing with the upper crust of French high society, but rather a street wise, in the guts little tome that entertains and educates - though sadly, it is unlikely one can find the Paris that Liebling describes anymore.



3. I have to say first of all that I'm a sucker for all of the "Paris in the early part of the twentieth century" literature. I love Celine and Miller, but my favorite was Hemingway's A Moveable Feast. Well, Between Meals is no A Moveable Feast but it certainly is a high quality read that I can unquestionably recommend to you.
   
   Liebling, make no mistake, is a top notch writer and his sentence structure, use of metaphor, and style have much to offer aspiring wordsmiths. He has an eye for the essential and this is particularly true if you're at all like me as far as food is concerned. Liebling is a true gourmand and, even though I am completely unlearned and unappreciative in regards to fine dining, I still enjoyed his narration and memories of that splendid age.
   
   The best of these essays is "Passable" where he recalls his old girlfriend from his student years. Liebling informs us that he does a poor job in reconstructing her but his description of their romance is quite compelling. I loved that essay just as I did the one on Mirande. This is a world long gone but we're fortunate that books like this are still in print. Reading it will give you a snapshot of beauty that will hang like a Renoir in the corridors of your mind.



4. This book was strongly recommended to me by a friend who is from Europe and is very discerning when it comes to American writers. I'm glad that I have it.
   
   While not nearly as zany or as challenging as Kerouac or Burroughs, this work, at its best, is rich, insightful and intensely funny: "What he called his pipes("ma tuyauterie"), being insufficiently excercised, lost their tone, like the leg muscles of a retired champion. When, in his kindly effort to please me, he challenged the escargots en pots de chambre, he was like an old fighter who tries a comeback without training for it."
   
   The language is elegant and piercing, despite what the hypercritics have said; and the work stands as an opus to epicurean bliss.
   
   It's well worth the read before, after, or in between the wonderful meals!



5. Did anyone ever love Paris, or at least eating in Paris, like Liebling. I share his love for the city and for the cuisine. Perhaps this colors my view but I really enjoyed this book.

5 comments about Top 10 Paris (Dk Eyewitness Top 10 Travel Guides).

1. For experienced Paris travelers such as myself it's an obvious time and money waster. However for Paris newbies it's great. My friend bought this for her first time in paris and loved it...it was a great way to keep track of the touristy things she wanted to see/do.



2. This was nearly the most useful item I took on my recent trip to Paris. As previous reviews mentioned, the fold-out maps were great.
   
   Every time I needed to go somewhere or return to my hotel, I'd first review the map in the front to see where I was and determine which Metro station I needed to find. Then, I'd flip to the Metro map in the back to navigate the route home. The "zoomed in" section of the front map which is in the back helped me find my way after I went astray and was critical in planning our walks through Paris.
   
   And although you know you want to see the Eifel Tower and the Louvre and what not while you're in Paris, you might not know exactly where they are in relation to each other. That map in the front is great - just look for the purple splotches. Each one is a site you won't want to miss.
   
   The other Top 10 listings were great too. Once you see all the major sites, you might have a little time left to do something completely random. The different restaurants, stores, and parks listed offer many great ideas. And locating them with the maps enclosed are half the fun!!
   
   I'd recommend this and the Rick Steve's Paris book to anyone going. And, for my next trip, I will check out the Top 10 Eyewitness book for my next destination.



3. For the major sites, I found this guide superb! It gave concise and relevant details about each site which I found great. Also, the map in the back was easy to read yet detailed enough to easily navigate us around the City. I highly recommend this guide.



4. I'm not a seasoned or jaded traveler ... yet! Neophyte European travellers will find that experience and time are the limiting resources when it comes to pre-planning a first trip to a destination as large and complex as the City of Lights. The Eyewitness Travel Top 10 format provides more than enough details to allow for an informed choice between competing destinations but unlike many of the competing alternative guides, it makes no attempt to be encyclopedic drowning an unsuspecting reader in so much knowledge that choices become next to impossible.
   
   Eyewitness Travel Guides seem to have the market beat by a long margin! That's not to say that Lonely Planet, Frommer, Michelin or the Blue and Green Guides miss the mark entirely but the Eyewitness series, in general, seems to be more informative. The photographs and illustrations instill a higher degree of keen anticipation and provide a better means of choosing in advance between a world of competing destinations and alternative tourist attractions. And I can't say enough about the Top 10 format ... dozens of lists - events, restaurants, hotels, museums, walks, churches, bars, great spots for children, insider tips and so much more. Whether your taste in vacations runs to exploring the hot night life spots or scoping out the most exciting history that museums and art galleries have to offer, Top 10 Paris will make your trip easier to plan and more enjoyable in the doing.
   
   Portability, durability, sensible layout and organization not to mention the included maps of the city and the metro system make Top 10 Paris the correct choice to tote along with you while you're actually out and about in Paris as well.
   
   Finally, Top 10 Paris is a great way of post-filling information and details into some of the holes or places that you might miss or have to rush through when you're actually on the trip. Along with photographs and trip journals, it's also a wonderful way to resurrect detailed memories of a trip long after you've returned home.
   
   Paul Weiss



5. Concise up to date guidebook. One for taking with you (nice and light and only contains the essentials.)

5 comments about The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter, and Tears at the World's Most Famous Cooking School.

1. Since the mega-success of Elizabeth Gilbert's "Eat Pray Love", there has been a corresponding uptick in the number of autobiolgraphical books about people (mostly all women in their 30s) chucking it all, and finding soul-fulfilling contentedness in SOMETHING (anything) besides ordinary life. I suppose it is a natural reaction to all the books of the 80s and 90s, in which people (again, mostly women) found hitherto unforeseen joy in having kick-ass corporate jobs....in the new economy of the 21st century, what with downsizing and layoff and the technology bust, there isn't a lot of joy in corporate America (or Europe) and it suddenly sounds wonderful to be doing something else....something more aimless and wild...heck, actually what it sounds like are all those books of the SEVENTIES that suggested you chuck it all, and hitchhike around the world and "find yourself".
   
   I guess my mom was right when she said "everything comes around again". Well, here it is.
   
   In this, her first book, Kathleen Flinn is a highly paid internet mucketymuck for Microsoft (*a TEENSY detail she um, forgets to mention but which is highly critical to her actions) who gets laid off, undoubtedly with the kind of severance pay and benefits that equal more than an average person earns in a lifetime. No, Ms. Flinn doesn't mention who she worked for, but amazingly she loses her job in London, and doesn't have to A. move back to the US or B. get another job FOR OVER A YEAR and C. she has enough cash to live in Paris, in luxury apartments, for over a year and D. attend an expensive, legendary cooking school ... oh, and sorry I nearly forgot -- she also got have a very cool wedding on a private island in Florida.
   
   Inbetween, we get to read of her experiences at Le Cordon Bleu, the most famous cooking school in the world. They have official "branch" schools all over the world, including the US and Canada, but Ms. Flinn only wants to attend the Paris school, despite her grade-school level French. Much of the book is centered on her difficulties in communicating at school, and in every activity (from renting an apartment to ordering pizza), but we are never told why she choose to attend classes in a language she is not fluent in when, for example, there is a respected Le Cordon Bleu in Las Vegas and another one in Ottawa, Canada....and it can't be the many charms of Paris, because very little of the book shows us Paris, or any part of France. No wonder, because the school is very demanding, and poor Ms. Flinn has to move her fiance overseas (he quits his lucrative job to do so, and "somehow" there is enough money for both of them to spend the year not working, in a luxury apartment, and eating out all the time) and also plan her wedding. Mike, her fiance, is an incredible stand-up guy -- the perfect boyfriend/fiance/husband who will do anything for his woman, plus he's handsome, successful (a pilot, an executive, etc.), very romantic, and he never argues or quarrels or leaves wet towels in the bathroom, or hates being in a country where he doesn't speak the language. 'Cuz he's perfect.
   
   Actually, the blurb on the cover says "the author discovers the love of her life right in front of her", which had me thinking way until the halfway point of the book, that "perfect Mike" would reveal himself to be a creep, and that Ms. Flinn would fall in love with one of her Chef instructors! that's how one-dimensional poor Mike is portrayed. But it turned out just to be confusing book-jacket blurb kerfluffle.
   
   It turns out that what you learn at Le Cordon Bleu is how to cook very elaborate, very caloric old-fashioned "French restaurant food" -- everything pureed and covered in creamy sauces. (If your parents ever took you out to eat at a 'fancy' restaurant with a French name, you know what I mean.) They seem insulated from anything that has happened in culinary history since around 1961. I'm not a professional cook, but it seems to me that this kind of "training" would be of minimal use to anybody hoping to work in or run a modern restaurant -- and tellingly, Ms. Flinn's classes are entirely attended by non-French students -- not one is native French. In the entire 3-part, year long program, all her fellow students are either Asian, non-French European, Canadian, or American. Quite a few, including Flinn herself, are spending about $30,000 grand in tutition, plus living expenses in one of the world's most expensive cities PLUS a year lost at a paying profession -- to attend cooking school and then HAVE NO INTENTION TO COOK PROFESSIONALLY or work in a restaurant.
   
   Now -- this strikes me as awful peculiar. I don't think the same would be true for students attending the Culinary Institute of America, for example. I appreciate people wanting to make a 180 degree career shift, in mid-life, but I admit that I am baffled by anyone wanting to make a huge investment in schooling, living overseas, etc., and yet "has no idea" why.
   
   It's certainly not to "live and work in Paris", because with the demands of the school, Ms. Flinn doesn't get around Paris all that much -- she's on the buses and trains a lot -- and she never really hones her French beyond simple words.
   
   There are places she goes -- like the giant food market, Rungis -- that I would have loved to have heard more about, or even seen some pictures (why is it that these new "find yourself" travelogues never seem to have any photos, when digital cameras are so tiny and easy to carry along?), but they are of less interest to the author than blow-by-blow descriptions of sauces she has made or puff pastry she practices on or the occasional small kitchen snafu (a duck falls to the floor!).
   
   Actually, what I carried away was the strong feeling that, though she never admits to this, Ms. Flinn planned all along to write an "expose" about Le Cordon Bleu, and sell the manuscript, and that the cooking school and year-off in Paris, was all upfront costs to the eventual bestseller she was hoping for....investing her "Microsoft millions" into something even more lucrative. If so, then the subject is deceiving, because this is not about wannabe chef finally daring to live her dream -- it's an investment scheme. Not nearly as charming.
   
   I did learn one genuinely interesting (though never fully explained) thing in the course of this book -- the famous cooking school trains its chefs to cook on OLD ELECTRIC RANGES...yup, the kind of stove your mom probably cooked on. Yet, any restaurant in the world of any quality would use a very different kind of large, commercial gas range that is much hotter and fussier to work on. From my personal experience, I know it is very difficult to go back and forth from electric to gas, just on a home stove for home cooking -- I can't imagine how hard it would be to translate very complex, elaborate "gourmet" cooking styles and recipes this way! My guess is, it would be awful, and it would at the least badly confuse a new chef and retard their intial progress at a real job. It suggests something never discussed in the book -- that maybe a very expensive French cooking school with unreliable electric ranges, and whose students are all foreign and not French, is maybe....MAYBE...sort of a tourist scam and not the place that real French chefs go to train.
   
   I can't prove this, but prior to reading this book, the idea would have never entered my head -- like anyone else who likes cookbooks and cooking tv shows, I figured "Le Cordon Bleu" was the best of the best. Now, I seriously gotta wonder. Just like with Ms. Flinn -- after several hundred pages of her life experience, I actually know less about her than I did on page one.



2. The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry is a riveting memoir of one woman's journey through the hallowed kitchens of Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Fresh from a corporate layoff in her London office, Kathleen Flinn chases her childhood dream to attend Le Cordon Bleu, encouraged by then-boyfriend Mike. Kathleen's love for cooking came as a result of necessity: after her father's early death from cancer when Kathleen was a teenager, she took over cooking for her family, eventually exploring the works of Julia Child and other cuisines. As an adult, her job in journalism allowed her to dabble in food writing and to indulge her love of restaurants, cooking, and food around the globe (including a brush with food poisoning from undercooked pig kidneys in China).
   
   Kathleen's witty observations of Cordon Bleu demonstrations and classes are culled from 600 pages of personal notes, 120 hours of audio recordings, and selections from the 300-plus recipes in the Cordon Bleu curriculum, so readers are instantly immersed into the grueling world of elite chefdom, including less appetizing ventures such as gutting fish, removing tendons and glands from chickens and guinea fowl, beheading rabbits, and chopping live lobsters in half (this book is definitely NOT for the squeamish). However, such visions are tempered by sweeter notes, including puff pastry and delicate sauces described in detail.
   
   Kathleen describes her new friends and classmates in detail, along with her continuing explorations of Paris and her struggles to improve her rusty French. One of the book's most touching moments involves a visit from her sister, who had planned on studying at the Sorbonne but gave up her place (and her dreams of studying in France) when their father was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Small moments of everyday Parisian life provide a pleasant counterpart to break up the monotony of daily classes. Other domestic affairs include Kathleen's marriage to Mike, a visit from annoying houseguests, and several medical emergencies.
   
   The Sharper Your Knife includes many of the recipes alluded to in the text, and the back of the book thoughtfully includes a recipe index for faster retrieval. Traditional selections include Beef Braised in Red Wine, Chicken Cordon Bleu (which has no affiliation with the school), Rabbit or Chicken with Mustard Sauce, Chocolate Souffle, and Duck With Orange Sauce. Some of the author's personal favorites include Minestrone Soup, Gumbo from Paris, and Banana and Nutella Crepes.



3. I bought this book based on the glowing reviews it received on this site. After all, it combined two of my great loves -- cooking and France - as subject matter. Unfortunately, I am still struggling to finish it. There is nothing compelling or terribly interesting in this story which is prosaically written. It doesn't come to Bill Buford's "Heat" or any of the Michael Ruhlman books. Eh...



4. My book club recently read this book and we unanimously voted it a five star. It's such a good read and the author writes a touching story - sometimes funny and sometimes a little sad but always moving.
   
   We have 17 members in our club and many have purchased the book as gifts for others after we read it.
   
   I am an avid reader and this book kept me enthralled. I was up reading it until 2:00 am once.
   
   I would recommend it to others. You will not be disappointed.



5. while it is true that certain aspects of this story might strike some readers as unfair or annoying (that she can afford not to work for a year and live in paris, and that she does all of this not as a career move, but more as a means to "find herself") the bottom line is that this is just not a particularly interesting or well- written book. in fact, it reads more like a journal than a compelling narrative. there is no suspense, no stakes, nothing at all to carry a reader through to the end - unless you're dying to know whether or not she graduates, which actually matters not at all, since her diploma is more a "badge of honor" than a means to an end. ultimately, it doesn't succeed on either level - as memoir or food journalism - as it manages to be somehow too small and personal to be universal, and not personal enough for us to care about the characters. anyone truly interested in the subject of cooking would do far better to read "heat", "kitchen confidential", or michael ruhlman's books (if they haven't already) for any real sense of what the life of a "chef" is like.

5 comments about Chic Shopping Paris.

1. The best addresses and tips are in this little gem of a book. Things the average tourist or even seasoned shopper would be hard pressed to find on their own. I'm almost sad that "the secrets are out" !! I highly recommend this book before your trip to Paris and for a fun read in general.
   Stephanie
   PS I live in Paris and consider myself a 'shopaholic' and loved discovering some new addresses in this book.



2. I just purchased a copy of "Chic Shopping Paris." It's a delightful guidebook. The information is absolutely essential if you plan to visit Paris, and, of course shop. If you don't plan to visit Paris, you can still injoy the beautiful color photos and dream!



3. The perfect book for exploring Paris via shopping! The book is divided by neighborhoods for easy reference. The descriptions are extremely helpful and the photographs could be postcards of Paris themselves. The small size of the book will fit into your purse for easy access. I read this on the subway before I went shopping and couldn't wait to start shopping.



4. Travel through the best of the insider's Paris in 208 beautifully written and photographed pages. In concise, but through narratives, Ms. Magniant brings the best of Paris to your mind while Allison Harris' photos are each a well composed tableau of the individuals shop's wares. From wall designs to unique notions to toys, antique printed matter, designer clothers, jewelery, perfumes, all manner of foodstuffs, and other off-the-beaten-track treasures- if you can't find something of great interest to you, don't see Paris-see your doctor!



5. I travel to France and especially Paris often and love to have an insiders look at shopping places that visitors often don't know about. I can't wait to get there in October and use my little green book to check out some of the places in it. Love having the email addresses, phone numbers and the many pictures. Thank you Rebecca!

5 comments about Paris to the Moon.

1. This book has been enlightening in at least one respect - I thought one had to be an upper-class English twit to be this pretentious. Gopnik, of course, is not the former, but he is most certainly the latter.
   
   To be fair, occasionally Gopnik does present a humorous nugget or a unique insight into Parisian life (though not French life; he is only a Parisophile, not a Francophile.) It's the other 95% of the book's self-indulgent prattle that is so annoying. I swear that if Gopnik thought that too many readers understood the massive amounts of French in the book, he would switch to Latin or Greek. He is not merely a name dropper, he's a word dropper.
   
   While it starts out well enough, no more than 1/2 way through the book the reader is reduced to skimming page after page of discussions about food, reports of haute couture fashion shows, and an endless series of boring reflections on his young son. Toward the end of the book Gopnik even mentions taking his 4-year old on a trip back to New York in order for the boy to be interviewed for admission to a good pre-school! What a turkey this Gopnik character is. How is he ever going to explain all this pomposity to the boy when he grows up?



2. I picked up this book for insights on the less-touristy aspects of Paris, prior to a trip my family is taking. It's a very enjoyable book, and the author's descriptions definitely have raised my anticipation level for our visit, as well as given me ideas about places for kids. Plus (as many other reviewers noted), it's a funny and charming book. As the husband of a former chef, I enjoyed his discursions about cooking, too.
   
   My one complaint comes from the occasional pretentiousness and preciousness of the author's lifestyle. How many of us could move to Paris for five years during the prime of our working lives? And how many of us could take a month's vacation to the US in the summer, or fly our kids back for two days of interviews for kindergarten? Kindergarten?
   
   The author comes from a very small slice of our society, and he both downplays this and celebrates it at different times. And I don't like it. For example, his literary allusions -- whether French, English or American -- go over my head. I'm a well-read person, but I feel as if the author is trying to show that he has a greater range than his readers. To shift from Baudelaire to the New York Knicks within a few paragraphs is trying to have it both ways -- the intellectual and the common man.



3. An interesting collection of essays about family life in Paris. Gopnik's erudite, interesting descriptions of the City of Light will delight Francophiles, although his writing is fairly pretentious and pedantic at times. Nevertheless, this book is still a worthwhile read.



4. PARIS TO THE MOON is a collection of essays by a NEW YORKER writer. Gopnik and his wife moved to Paris in 1995. When a young teen, he visited Paris in 1773. After the couple's child was born in 1994 they endeavored to fulfill Adam's desire to live in Paris while their son was still portable. The romance of Paris became the author's subject for his NEW YORKER pieces. There was no big story in France. There was a lot of peace amd prosperity in the world and a lot animosity directed toward the United States. When Adam Gopnik thinks of Paris he thinks of his wife Martha and his son Luke.
   
   French politicians engage in ostentatious displays of detachment. The Parisian government has a clutch of domaine prive apartments. In reality, most apartments in Paris are not available to rent in a market sense. It seems that one of the politicians lodged his entire family in various domaine prive apartments. French life in general is chock full of entitlements. North African immigrants, though, have no entree. The French elites have now decided that the cure for hidden deals is transparency. Gopnik describes a strike. France is a centralized country and anything that mainly affects Paris is a national event. French people deal with an event by pretending it isn't happening. (Picasso and Sartre pretended the Germans didn't occupy Paris.)
   
   The writer's son Luke enjoys the Luxembourg Gardens, even in November. Trying to join an American-style gym, the author discovers that the rhetoric, the cult of sport is absent in France. Talking about the bureaucracy takes the place of talking about sport. In France there is no retirement anxiety. People don't linke the notion of stopping to work with stopping to live as people do in the U.S. It is believed that what France needs is its own Bill Gates. It has a philosopher, Habermas, who contends that the basis for the state is the human love of arguing.
   
   The French have been obsessed with Vichy for more than twenty-five years. Thus, they did not finally confront their past during Papon's trial in Bordeaux. Explanation turns first on romanticism, next on ideological rigor, and finally on the futility of explanation. In 1997 there was an incident at the Eiffel Tower. The French draw their identity from their jobs, the Americans from what they buy. Adam Gobnik decides that couture is romantic cartoon. Yves St. Laurent is still the favorite in 1997 of the Socialists in the government. He uses opera arias to show his clothes. The new Bibliotheque Nationale, a Mitterand grand project, is, according to Gopnik, in the totalitarian Luxe style. Other transformations of cultural sites have been undertaken at the Louvre and the Bastille Opera. Jazz, loved by the French, and Impressionism, loved by the Americans, confirm the simple physical basis of powerful emotion.
   
   Alice Waters is in Paris at some point during the writer's stay. He offers to cook dinner for her and is nervous. Her ends up cooking lamb for seven hours where four would have been appropriate. It seems that the purpose of the visit of Alice Waters to Paris is to determine the feasibility of opening a restaurant at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs at the Louvre. She has reconciled utopian politics with aristocratic cooking. The crucial unit of French social life is the cohort. Members of the cohort inhabit neutral places such as parks and cafes.
   
   The couple's daughter Olivia is born in Paris. Since Paris is beautiful, but France is not a life, the family returns to America. The book is both amusing and instructive.



5. This is a book for francophiles. It might be a good resource on French culture and attitudes if you will be spending an extended time traveling or working in France. But if you are looking for good literature, skip it.
   
   Should have known by just opening the cover - the first SENTENCE in the book has 9 (count 'em - NINE) commas in it. The prose is self-centered, self-conscious, and self-congratulatory.
   
   You are regaled by sentences like this one: "The lucidity of Parisian empiricism was bought at the price of the grandiosity of Parisian abstraction, and you couldn't have one without the other".
   
   Gopnik is the sort of author who thinks when he breaks a fingernail, it's significant and we need to know. You get an entire chapter devoted to a bedtime story he made up for his son, end to end.
   
   The author needs to get over himself, and the editor needs to go back to flipping burgers. Spend your valuable leisure hours reading something else!

3 comments about The Patisseries of Paris: Chocolatiers, Tea Salons, Ice Cream Parlors, and more.

1. This is a lovely little fairy tale of a book, and whether you are a foodie, an armchair traveler, a world traveler, or someone who needs romance, this book will supply it in spades. When you see the book, you will notice that it is small, designed to look like a box from a patisserie or chocolatier, and the colors are muted and soft, like a 21rst century impressionist painting seen through a layer of clouds. I loved the writing. It is intimate, honest, amusing, and charming, almost like having your best friend talking to you, and filling your head with incredible pictures. You will almost be able to smell, taste, and hear the sounds of the places you are reading about. I will probably never go to Paris, but I fell in love with France in high school when I studied the language, so I love reading about all things French. If you are lucky enough to go to Paris, a quick perusal of this book will tell you the best places to eat, see, and experience. I do not recommend a quick perusal, however, because this book at it's best, is like a fairy tale in food. It is charming, concise, anecdotal, and romantic, because hey! It is Paris. When your head is filled to bursting with wonderful imagery from the writing, take a moment or ten or twenty to enjoy the beautiful photographs. The really lovely thing about this book is that the writing and the photos go together so well. One does not detract from the other, but it enhances and completes the other. I must say again how much I loved the writing. I really enjoyed the behind the scenes aspect of some of the shops, and especially "A Day In The Life of a Patissier". I can not recommend this book highly enough. It is absolutely wonderful, and I feel as though I have just had a blissful experience and not gained an ounce! The word evocative comes to mind; I can almost see myself sitting at one of those darling little tables, looking chic, tragically beautiful, and sharing sweets with a devastating French actor. That may not be your dream, but it is mine, and I won't say what happens after he pays the bill, and looks soulfully into my eyes, and warns me not to touch the last croissant.



2. A fun guide I finally got to see at the British bookstore, W.H.Smith on rue de Rivoli. The luscious pictures and detailed descriptions make you want to run all over Paris and not miss a single patisserie. Sadly a few places have since closed like Carette. Why any pastry shop should ever close in Paris is beyond me!



3. This cocoa-dusted treasure hits that mythical sweet spot between practical, trusted travel guide and gorgeous, dreamy (if petite) coffee table book. Full of the kind of beautiful photos and evocative lyrical prose that you'll never find in any guide and jam-packed with all of the actionable, expert advice that's missing from all those exquisitely photographed gift books, this one has it all. Organized by arrondissements, you're meant to flip to the neighborhood you're visiting to find the author's recos for the best macarons, tartes or baguettes nearby. If I were visiting France soon, that's just what I'd be doing. Cramming bookmarks between the pages, grabbing a map and taking off before the sun came up. But for now, curled up on my couch in New Jersey, I'm literally reading this like a romantic novel. Cover to cover. Dreaming of Paris...

3 comments about Fodor's Paris 2008 (Fodor's Gold Guides).

1. Fodor's Paris 2008 has everything the average vacationer would need to experience France from the inside out.
   Here is a detailed index of what this book has to offer:
   
   -Clothing size, weight, distance, liquid volume, and temperature conversions inside the front cover
   -Detailed table of contents
   -"About This Book" page which tells you how to read and use the information in the book
   -General information about Paris such as cleanliness, diversity, and the general attitude of Parisians
   -Paris Planner which includes information on what to wear, when to go, and transportation
   -Detailed and easy to read maps of Paris and it's arrondissements
   -Detailed lists and descriptions of Paris's top attractions
   -Fun things to do in Paris with kids
   -Great Itineraries
   -Where to eat
   -Where to stay
   -A selection of gorgeous color photographs
   -Word of Mouth from Fodor's online forums
   -Detailed information about nightlife and the arts
   -Shopping
   -Free stuff to do in Paris
   -Books and movies of Paris
   -Vital vocabulary words
   -Information and advice on traveling such as travelers insurance, booking, rental cars, guided tours, emergencies abroad, electricity, money, taxes
   -A folded tear out map of Paris
   -Map of Paris's Metro system on the inside of the back cover
   
   I would recommend this book to anyone considering visiting Paris on vacation, anyone moving to Paris, or the average Joe who wants to learn more about the most romantic city in the world. It has everything you want to know about Paris.



2. I bought both Paris and London 2008 books for my upcoming trip to Europe, and I enjoy both. The guides are easy to read, tell you how to make the most of your time at various locations, tell you how to get to where you want to go and provide a variety of eating and shopping locations for all budgets.



3. I used this book on my first trip to Paris,and it was a valuable resource to pick how to spend our time. The maps were also very helpful in getting around the maze that is the Paris streets.

5 comments about Pudlo Paris 2007-2008: A Restaurant Guide (Pudlo Paris).

1. We just returned from Paris and I have to say that I wish EVERY major city had a Pudlo guide. I'm sure they're out there in some guise, but this one is simply perfect.
   
   I've used Zagat before and in the States have had pretty good results. However, in Europe, I've found that many Zagat reviewers don't quite get the European dining experience. You find scores of complaints about rude waiters, cramped tables and service taking too long. They don't do these fabulous restaurants justice because they base their experiences on wide-open American restaurants with waiters that speak their language who want to turn their tables as fast as possible. Many of the reviews in Zagat get downright annoying.
   
   The Pudlo Paris guide was fantastic. It didn't matter which arrondissement you were in, you were never more than a block from a perfect dining experince, whether it was in a noisy bistro or a white tablecloth temple of gastronomy.
   
   I'll never go back without it!



2. On our first try with Pudlo's for a week in Paris, we give it two thumbs up. Not every description was accurate - the "rugby restaurant" had nary a green shirt present during the World Championship games - but the cuisine/pricing info was reliable.



3. This book was full of good information on TONS of restaurants, but was hard to use because of its organization - by district. Obviously, this is probably the best way to organize this kind of book, but when traveling I would rather say I'm on Rue Cler, where can I find a good restaurant? Not I'm in the 7th arr. and I have 20 different places in 20 different parts of the arr. which to hunt down? We ended up 'donating' the book to the apartment we rented because we found it rather useless. Also, all of the restaurants in the book were expensive, so the book wasn't good for a couple on a budget.



4. In previous visits to Paris we'd relied on recommendations from friends reviews found on travel websites, and luck. Then you're in Paris and find that the recommended restaurants are far from where you are... or that our friends' taste is rather pedestrian. This time we took the Pudlo guide with us. As a result we ate heavenly - yet as inexpensively as it's possible while the $ is low and the Euro high. The guide is conveniently divided by city areas (arrondissments) so wherever you find yourself at lunch or dinner time, you can just pick a nearby restaurant that's recommended. Restaurants are also marked by price range and decor, and there are a handful of "Pudlo's favorites" -- every one of those was fantastic food. We'll never go to Paris again without the most recent Pudlo in hand.



5. Have to say that this book was one of the most used books on our last trip. We liked how it was written and the reviews seemed to be right on. Fine dining is paramount to us in our travels and this really helped find the spots to try. Highly recommend it.

5 comments about This is Paris (This is . . .).

1. Such a cute book!! Both informational and cute. Great for kids and the child within all of us.



2. This book has created a fabulous insight into the world of travel for my children. It has compelled us all to take a language course in French and to travel here and put our dreams into reality. It has planted the seed of intrigue and wonderment to which my children seek out this book to read at bedtime.



3. My granddaughter loves books about Paris; however, she is only 2 1/2 years old. While searching for other books about the city, Paris, we stumbled across this book on Amazon.com. She loves it. It is written in language she can understand and it has many drawings and illustrations to capture her attention. You won't be short changed with this book. We can't wait to order the rest of the books in this series.



4. Once I have found this book at Amazon and I wondered about the Czech name of the author. I got to explore the book and realized that he was a Czech, what a mystery, we have never been taught about him at school (of no type). His books were written in English after he emigrated from the Czechoslovakia and were never published in Czech. I got too amazed and curious about this book, so I bought it, read it and love it! All the pictures and the style he wrote it in. I just feel cheated, that we Czechs do not know nothing about this wonderful books and about the author.



5. Written and drawn in 1959 this children's book taught me a thing or two about a city I thought I already knew a lot about. The pictures and scenes are wonderful in bright colors and include most of the major sites in Paris from "le metro" to Montmartre and the Champs Elysees.
   
   There have been a few of the drawings, or accompanying text, that have been asterisked to reflect the changes that have occurred in Paris since 1959 but if you are taking young ones over I highly recommend this book as a way to make some of what they will see a little more understandable for them.