Paris Reading Suggestions (not guidebook)
Mar 10th, 2011, 06:04 AM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 52
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Paris Reading Suggestions (not guidebook)
Hi all! My fiance and I will be heading off to Paris this summer for our honeymoon. I was wondering if the fodrites had any suggestions on books to read about Paris history/art/architecture to get excited for the trip! I'm a big fan of art and architectural history, as well as the lives of French royalty. Did anyone read a book that they just loved before a trip to Paris?
Mar 10th, 2011, 07:10 AM
#4
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-in-france.cfm
Here's a good selection. Many are in Paris.
Have a wonderful trip!
Here's a good selection. Many are in Paris.
Have a wonderful trip!
Mar 10th, 2011, 07:37 AM
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 52
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The "Seven Ages of Paris" looks interesting! Thanks for the link to the other fodors post, I hadn't found that. I was surfing Barnes and Noble and saw "Into a Paris Quartier", has anyone read that? It seemed like a little more of a light hearted take on Parisian history.
Mar 10th, 2011, 07:37 AM
#7
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...te-of-mind.cfm
Here's another thread that will "take you there"
Here's another thread that will "take you there"
Mar 10th, 2011, 08:50 AM
#8
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 49,560
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
http://www.librarything.com/work/235945
One of the best books ever on Parisian architecture. A coffee-table book, but eminently readable.
For something completely different, I just yesterday finished reading John Baxter's We'll Always Have Paris: Sex and Love in the City of Light. Could not put it down.
One of the best books ever on Parisian architecture. A coffee-table book, but eminently readable.
For something completely different, I just yesterday finished reading John Baxter's We'll Always Have Paris: Sex and Love in the City of Light. Could not put it down.
Mar 10th, 2011, 11:55 AM
#9
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 2,552
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hemingway's <i>A Moveable Feast</i> is very evocative of Paris at a specific point in time. It made me fall in love with Paris before I'd ever really seen it! I love the way he describes viewing the Cezannes on an empty stomach made the images sharper. It's a fast read.
Mar 10th, 2011, 02:03 PM
#11
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 6,396
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Whether or not it's good writing is a matter of debate, but <i>The DaVinci Code</i> would get me in a Paris mood.
<i>Between Meals</i>, A.J. Liebling's collection of essays relating to Paris and food, would also be a great choice.
If you'd rather watch a movie, two good ones for getting Paris-fied are <i>Before Sunrise</i>, a decent romantic comedy, and <i>Diva</i>, a terrific crime-suspense film.
<i>Between Meals</i>, A.J. Liebling's collection of essays relating to Paris and food, would also be a great choice.
If you'd rather watch a movie, two good ones for getting Paris-fied are <i>Before Sunrise</i>, a decent romantic comedy, and <i>Diva</i>, a terrific crime-suspense film.
Mar 10th, 2011, 02:13 PM
#12
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 85
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Paris, the Biography of a City, by Colin Jones. Sarah's Key (Holocaust fiction). Suite Francaise (evcuation of Paris). My Life in France, by Julia Childes. Any number of books re the roundup of Jews by the French at le Velodrome d'Hiver. Is Paris Burning? Americans in Paris. A Town Like Paris by Bruce Corbett. Dancing for Degas. Paris Passions by Keith Spier. Why Sixty Million Fremchmen Can't Be Wrong. The Sharper the Knife, the Less You Cry(Le Cordon Bleue). Any of the Detective Maigret series by Georges Simenon.
Mar 10th, 2011, 02:17 PM
#13
I'll second the Baxter book with some amusing photos.
A Corner in the Marais,
The Secret Life of the Seine,
A Place in the World Called Paris.
We'll Always Have Paris,American tourists since 1930,
The Lost King.
Movie suggestion, Ronin
A Corner in the Marais,
The Secret Life of the Seine,
A Place in the World Called Paris.
We'll Always Have Paris,American tourists since 1930,
The Lost King.
Movie suggestion, Ronin
Mar 10th, 2011, 03:17 PM
#14
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,853
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
<i>The Companion Guide to Paris</i> by Anthony Glyn. And, somewhat off topic, Sarah Bakewell's recent <i>How to Live, A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer</i> now available in paperback.
Mar 10th, 2011, 05:04 PM
#15
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 2,552
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Yes, <i>Diva</i>! Very 80's, but so great... <i>Ronin</i>, too, for those great car chase scenes!
And thanks Bronxbomber for reminding me about <i>Suite Française</i>. I'd wanted to read it a while back but somehow it had fallen off my list.
And thanks Bronxbomber for reminding me about <i>Suite Française</i>. I'd wanted to read it a while back but somehow it had fallen off my list.
Mar 13th, 2011, 02:41 PM
#18
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 290
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I guess maybe you're not looking for any more suggestions, but just in case I would tentatively (because I haven't actually read it yet) recommend "Parisians" by Graeme Robb. Why recommend a book I haven't read, you ask? Because I absolutely loved his book "The Discovery of France" and I have every intention of reading "Parisians" as well, I just haven't quite got around to it (it's staring at me from my bookshelves instead...) Even if you think you know French history (or if you don't) he gives a completely new perspective on forgotten people and incidents, and really brings French culture alive in a new way. I will really have to get on to reading it now!
