Susan Cutsforth and her husband, Stuart, are 'ordinary' people living an extraordinary life. They both work full-time: one is a teacher librarian of thirty years, and the other, a middle-level clerk in the public service. But, as Susan recounts in Our House is Not in Paris, they own a holiday house in France - the other side of the world. And not only that, this petite maison required significant renovating, which they accomplished almost singlehandedly during their working holidays. Our House is Not in Paris is a story of pushing boundaries, aiming high and, most of all, taking risks. With humour, poetry and insight, Susan's story shows that you can do more than simply dream: if you work hard, anything is possible.
Our House is Definitely Not in Paris is the third memoir in the 'Our House' series, following Our House is Not in Paris and Our House is Certainly Not in Paris. The French countryside has again been poetically evoked in this delightful, charming and captivating memoir. The renovee adventures continue to enchant the reader and draw them further into the unfolding account of the Cutsforths' other life. This memoir allows us to travel side by side with Susan and Stuart as they fling open the shutters each day in their petite maison in a small French village. Humour, drama and pathos - Cuzance is a microcosm of the world. Cuisine, markets and the stunning rural landscape of Le Lot - a story that holds equal appeal for armchair travellers; those who already love France or those who will be inspired to explore the most visited country in the world. Our House is Definitely Not in Paris is about the cadences of daily life in a French country village, permeated by the clanging of church bells, enveloped in the endless golden light of a French summer.
Sequel to the bestselling Our House is Not in Paris. Join for the first time, or continue to share in this sequel, the French renovee trials and triumphs of Susan and Stuart Cutsforth, an 'ordinary' Australian couple. Our House is Certainly Not in Paris is a magical memoir about their renovation of an old farmhouse in France. They devote their holidays to breathing life back into its ancient stone walls. It is so charmingly written that the reader is transported to their petite village and the people in this book become like old friends. This is a story about achieving dreams. It makes you want to grab life with both hands.
Susan Cutsforth and her husband, Stuart, are e~ordinarye(tm) people living an extraordinary life. They both work full-time: one is a teacher librarian of thirty years, and the other, a middle-level clerk in the public service. But, as Susan recounts, they own a holiday house, Pied de la Croix, in Cuzance, a small village in south-western France e" the other side of the world. And not only that, this petite maison required significant renovating, which they accomplished almost singlehandedly during their working holidays.Our House is Not in Paris is a story of pushing boundaries, aiming high and, most of all, taking risks. With humour, poetry and insight, Susane(tm)s story shows that you can do more than simply dreame Out House Is Not In Paris has been a sensation on Amazon as an ebook and is now being published in print. Here is a sample of reviews being posted by readers: e~On more than one occasion I had to visit my local deli in Sydney and buy French cheese and bread to join the author on the steps of her rural French house.e(tm) e~What a catchy title. What a great little holiday read. I loved this book. I could think of nothing better than to buy a little house in France ...with this book I was able to partake in the journey with Susan Cutsforth. I only wish my Kindle could show photos!e(tm) e~Wonderful and touching! Thank you for your story! It was both wonderful and touching. I have not renovated in France but have the same hard work and endurance for projects in my bones. Husband and I spent time in France this year. I learned a touch of French from the library Michael Thomas tapes. I am still infatuated with France and still watch the movies and read the books. I can't get enough. I really enjoyed your adventures. So far away, but nonetheless, so determined to successfully carve out a life there. I will continue to think of both of you and will secretly wonder if every weather vane I see is yours! Bonjour!e(tm) e~Fantastic Fantastic... This book had my attention from the start until the end, it moved at a frenetic pace. The author has a magical ability to paint a clear picture of everything French. On more than one occasion I had to visit my local deli in Sydney and buy French cheese and bread to join the author on the steps of her rural French house! (True)If you are considering visiting France it is an ideal book to give you an insight into what to expect and what is expected of you. Well at least outside of Paris!For anyone renovating, anywhere, it is a must read. The passion is obvious not only in the renovating but also the writing.e(tm) e~A totally wonderful read, I just loved it. An amazingly easy read. I really felt like I was in France along with Susan and her resourceful hubby. I enjoyed the building of the numerous relationships within the memoir. I want to know what happens next in the renovation of the cottage. Bring on the next instalment.e(tm)
Bestselling author and world-renowned chef David Lebovitz continues to mine the rich subject of his evolving ex-Pat life in Paris, using his perplexing experiences in apartment renovation as a launching point for stories about French culture, food, and what it means to revamp one's life. Includes dozens of new recipes. When David Lebovitz began the project of updating his apartment in his adopted home city, he never imagined he would encounter so much inexplicable red tape while contending with perplexing work ethic and hours. Lebovitz maintains his distinctive sense of humor with the help of his partner Romain, peppering this renovation story with recipes from his Paris kitchen. In the midst of it all, he reveals the adventure that accompanies carving out a place for yourself in a foreign country—under baffling conditions—while never losing sight of the magic that inspired him to move to the City of Light many years ago, and to truly make his home there.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Wilde in Love, a joyful chronicle of a year in one of the most beautiful cities in the world: Paris. “What a beautiful and delightful tasting menu of a book: the kids, the plump little dog, the Italian husband. Reading this memoir was like wandering through a Parisian patisserie in a dream. I absolutely loved it.”—Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love When bestselling romance author Eloisa James took a sabbatical from her day job as a Shakespeare professor, she also took a leap that many people dream about: She sold her house and moved her family to Paris. With no classes to teach, no committee meetings to attend, no lawn to mow or cars to park, Eloisa revels in the ordinary pleasures of life—discovering corner museums that tourists overlook, chronicling Frenchwomen’s sartorial triumphs, walking from one end of Paris to another. She copes with her Italian husband’s notions of quality time; her two hilarious children, ages eleven and fifteen, as they navigate schools—not to mention puberty—in a foreign language; and her mother-in-law Marina’s raised eyebrow in the kitchen (even as Marina overfeeds Milo, the family dog). Paris in Love invites the reader into the life of a New York Times bestselling author and her spirited, enchanting family, framed by la ville de l’amour. Praise for Paris in Love “Exhilarating and enchanting . . . brims with a casual wisdom about life.”—Chicago Tribune “In this delightful charm-bracelet of a memoir, [Eloisa James shares] her adventures as an American suddenly immersed in all things French—food, clothes, joie de vivre.”—People “Enchanting . . . gives the reader a sense of being immersed along with James in Paris for a year . . . you see the rain, taste the food, observe the people.”—USA Today “This delectable confection, which includes recipes, is more than a visit to a glorious city: it is also a tour of a family, a marriage, and a love that has no borders. Très magnifique!”—Library Journal (starred review) “A charming, funny and poignant memoir . . . steeped in Paris and suffused with love.”—Star Tribune “Charming . . . a romance—for a city, a life, a family, and love itself.”—The Huffington Post
There were eccentric characters in the hotel. The Paris slums are a gathering-place for eccentric people—people who have fallen into solitary, half-mad grooves of life and given up trying to be normal or decent. Poverty frees them from ordinary standards of behaviour, just as money frees people from work. Some of the lodgers in our hotel lived lives that were curious beyond words. There were the Rougiers, for instance, an old, ragged, dwarfish couple who plied an extraordinary trade. They used to sell postcards on the Boulevard St Michel. The curious thing was that the postcards were sold in sealed packets as pornographic ones, but were actually photographs of chateaux on the Loire; the buyers did not discover this till too late, and of course never complained. The Rougiers earned about a hundred francs a week, and by strict economy managed to be always half starved and half drunk. The filth of their room was such that one could smell it on the floor below. According to Madame F., neither of the Rougiers had taken off their clothes for four years.
Expanding the narrow script of what it means to be Parisian, Laila Amine explores the novels, films, and street art made by Maghrebis, Franco-Arabs, and African Americans, including fiction by Charef, Chraïbi, Sebbar, Baldwin, Smith, and Wright, and such films as La haine, Made in France, Chouchou, and A Son.
Entertaining at home in gracious French style. Born from her experience of everyday living in France, Sharon Santoni reveals the gracious, easy French way of entertaining guests at her countryside home, year-round. Personal stories evoke the spirit of the French lifestyle, while gorgeous photos make us feel right at home. Santoni creates lush bouquets from her garden and utilizes resources from surrounding nature to lay gorgeous tables both indoors and outdoors. Venues range from a Sunday morning breakfast on the patio, to a ladies lunch in her lush garden, a formal dinner in her dining room, and a picnic by the river. Santoni also shares 15 favorite recipes utilizing seasonal foods. Find inspiration for your tables throughout the seasons, and discover the simple pleasure of entertaining friends and family. Sharon Santoni writes the popular blog My French Country Home. She is the author of My Stylish French Girlfriends (Gibbs Smith). She resides in Normandy, France.
A new collection from David Sedaris is cause for jubilation. His recent move to Paris has inspired hilarious pieces, including Me Talk Pretty One Day, about his attempts to learn French. His family is another inspiration. You Cant Kill the Rooster is a portrait of his brother who talks incessant hip-hop slang to his bewildered father. And no one hones a finer fury in response to such modern annoyances as restaurant meals presented in ludicrous towers and cashiers with 6-inch fingernails. Compared by The New Yorker to Twain and Hawthorne, Sedaris has become one of our best-loved authors. Sedaris is an amazing reader whose appearances draw hundreds, and his performancesincluding a jaw-dropping impression of Billie Holiday singing I wish I were an Oscar Meyer weinerare unforgettable. Sedariss essays on living in Paris are some of the funniest hes ever written. At last, someone even meaner than the French! The sort of blithely sophisticated, loopy humour that might have resulted if Dorothy Parker and James Thurber had had a love child. Entertainment Weekly on Barrel Fever Sidesplitting Not one of the essays in this new collection failed to crack me up; frequently I was helpless. The New York Times Book Review on Naked
