![]() It is a disturbing dramatization of the Nazi occupation during WWII and how the events of Sarah’s life affect Julia more than 60 years later. Sarah’s Key, Tatiana de Rosnay (Saint Martins Press, 2010) Recently made into a movie, Sarah’s Key intertwines the lives of Sarah, who lived during the nightmare of the Velodrome d’Hiver in 1942 and Julia, an American journalist living in Paris in 2010. Beautifully drawn characters and intensive honesty on the part of the writer add up to a compelling portrait of life and love in contemporary Paris. Hunting and Gathering, Anna Gavalda (Riverhead Trade, 2007) An intriguing story about a down-on-her-luck Frenchwoman, Camille, and her two housemates in a spectacularly decrepit Parisian mansion. Buy this at the shop which bears the name, in the shadow of Notre Dame, now run by the legendary George Whitman’s daughter – the appropriately named Sylvia Beach Whitman. Beach remembers them all in the intriguing memoir. Shakespeare & Company, Sylvia Beach (University of Nebraska Press, 1991) In 1919, Beach opened an English-language bookshop and lending library, which became a magnet for the community of ex-pat writers and characters living in Paris at the time. His eye for the very small, quotidian details of Parisian life is spot-on and often lyrical. Paris to the Moon, Adam Gopnik (Random House Trade, 2001) Gopnik’s quirky, fascinating collection of stories from Paris written for The New Yorker range from insightful political analysis to playful tales of city life with his wife and young children. His inflections and humor come across even more effectively and the results are spectacularly hysterical. Even better, get the audio book which is narrated by Sedaris. Me Talk Pretty One Day, David Sedaris (Back Bay Books, 2001) Hilarious collection of personal stories, including his adventures learning mangled French in Paris. Some of the entries are fiction and some are true-life stories - the beauty is that they all demonstrate an honest, most often humorous, portrayal of the French capital and the people who live there. That’s Paris: An Anthology of Life, Love and Sarcasm in the City of Light (Velvet Morning Press) A collection of essays from French, ex-pat and Francophiles that shows the city through their eyes. ![]()
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