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A Family in Paris: Stories of Food, Life and Adventure
When Australian Jane Paech moves to Paris, her visions of afternoons in bijou bistros and bookshops on the Left Bank are kept in check by the needs of a young family and a long to-do list that includes apartment-hunting, school selection, and multiple trips to IKEA.
Through a collection of sharp observations, insightful travel articles and laugh-out-loud anecdotes, A Family in Paris conveys the joys and difficulties of living in this most famous of cities. It introduces us to the Parisians and their eccentricities, explores the intricate rituals of daily life, and takes us beyond the well-trodden tourist sites to the best eating spots, boutiques, museums and markets that only a local could know about.
Frank, intimate and beautifully photographed, A Family in Paris is about making a home in a strange land, finding a community, and discovering the joy of renewal.
Through a collection of sharp observations, insightful travel articles and laugh-out-loud anecdotes, A Family in Paris conveys the joys and difficulties of living in this most famous of cities. It introduces us to the Parisians and their eccentricities, explores the intricate rituals of daily life, and takes us beyond the well-trodden tourist sites to the best eating spots, boutiques, museums and markets that only a local could know about.
Frank, intimate and beautifully photographed, A Family in Paris is about making a home in a strange land, finding a community, and discovering the joy of renewal.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published March 28, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
March 22, 2014
Reading this book is a lovely experience at any time, but it would be an especially great book to read for anyone planning a number of weeks in Paris as the author describes boutiques, cafes, museums, parks etc that are "off the beaten track" which would give a nice, broad Parisian experience - to enable exploration of the haunts of the locals. It is fun to read about the way in which daily life goes on in Paris - the hassles of bureaucracy, the formality of the French, the ways to go about shopping in boutiques, dining out, buying meat at the butcher's, the need to buy bread at least daily (within 6 hours a baguette can be rock hard!), and so on. Complemented by gorgeous photos of food, parks, architecture, monuments, cafés, shops etc, this is a treat to read!
July 22, 2023
This is a very confused book. The author states early on that she has dreams of being a travel writer or food writer, which is perfectly fine and admirable. The problem is that she tries to do both at once, as well as write a family memoir. The result is a jarring mess, with a heart wrenching scene involving her daughters struggling to cope at French school, then going as a family to a cafe for hot chocolate, then running through the menu, the ins and out of ordering at a cafe, other suitable cafes in the area, cost comparisons, finishing up with addressees, emails and phone numbers.
On the other hand, it’s very pretty.
DNF.
On the other hand, it’s very pretty.
DNF.
October 21, 2014
This is the living in Paris book I have been trying to find and just happened to pick it up randomly at the library when I was looking for a good book to read. Quelle suprise! I loved her observations and daily life snapshots. It really brought out what I think the real experience of living there with a family would be like and reminded me that I never NEVER want to live there, especially with kids. Visit yes, live in the city proper, no way!
March 5, 2016
An essential book for anyone moving to Paris to live. Warmly describes the culture, the people, the problems and the beauty. And the all-important tip: Rentals in Paris don't necessarily come with a kitchen!
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August 6, 2011Gorgeous hard book from the library. Photos are so inspiring!
January 19, 2018
Well, I love Paris, so of course I liked this book. But It was interesting and has lots of stores, restaurants, museums, etc. to help plan a trip to Paris.
May 15, 2018
Scattered funny anecdotes and a surface insight into daily life in Paris, not much to recommend it otherwise.
November 6, 2022
A beautiful book, well told and interesting true story with wonderful pictures. Reading this book is an experience to be savoured and enjoyed.
Makes a great coffee table book.
Makes a great coffee table book.
April 20, 2015
I enjoyed reading this. It probably helps that I am heading to Paris and am therefore doing research, but irregardless, it is still an enjoyable read.
Jane's description of the trials and tribulations of daily life in Paris did make me wonder if I still want to go. The seriousness and intolerance of Parisians (thus described) is an alien mindset to most Aussie (and other) outsiders. There is no doubt that Paris is a beautiful city, but intimidating too.
This book maybe non fiction, but it is certainly no reference book. It is a hotch potch of events and tales - entertaining but random.
Many have applauded the photography throughout the book. I didn't enjoy it to the same extent.
I did like the quotations chosen to accompany the text and I really like the "Julie calls...." snippets.
***Spoiler alert*** For some inexplicable reason, I was really, really disappointed to read in the epilogue that Jane and Tim got divorced, sometime after returning to Australia. I don't know why it should affect me so.... just imagined that all those trips to Paris Ikea would have been enough to cement any marriage!!
Jane's description of the trials and tribulations of daily life in Paris did make me wonder if I still want to go. The seriousness and intolerance of Parisians (thus described) is an alien mindset to most Aussie (and other) outsiders. There is no doubt that Paris is a beautiful city, but intimidating too.
This book maybe non fiction, but it is certainly no reference book. It is a hotch potch of events and tales - entertaining but random.
Many have applauded the photography throughout the book. I didn't enjoy it to the same extent.
I did like the quotations chosen to accompany the text and I really like the "Julie calls...." snippets.
***Spoiler alert*** For some inexplicable reason, I was really, really disappointed to read in the epilogue that Jane and Tim got divorced, sometime after returning to Australia. I don't know why it should affect me so.... just imagined that all those trips to Paris Ikea would have been enough to cement any marriage!!
January 6, 2013
Love this book. It is my bedtime reading. Jane Paech and her family moved from Australia to Paris as expats. The book is a series of vignettes about Jane, her husband and their two preteen daughters adjusting to everyday life as they attempted to settle in. Relatively simple events turn into monumental tasks as a result of language barriers and cultural differences.
At times the book reads like a Frommer's Guide to Paris. Jane documents places that she has frequented and lists them at the end of each chapter. Experiences in shops and restaurants, trip to landmarks, and "don't miss" sights are well described. She speaks lovingly about merchants who have been in business for years and sell their products with pride.
Jane has a way of writing that makes the reader feel like she is speaking directly to them as an old friend. Fun book, loved the ribbon page marker.
At times the book reads like a Frommer's Guide to Paris. Jane documents places that she has frequented and lists them at the end of each chapter. Experiences in shops and restaurants, trip to landmarks, and "don't miss" sights are well described. She speaks lovingly about merchants who have been in business for years and sell their products with pride.
Jane has a way of writing that makes the reader feel like she is speaking directly to them as an old friend. Fun book, loved the ribbon page marker.
February 23, 2013
I love this cover, both the dust jacket and underneath.
For anyone familiar with Paris, this is a lot of fun to read and I jotted down many vocabulary words in addition to salient addresses. I was amused by many of her anecdotes and read them aloud to great laughter. She is an engaging and witty recorder of events and situations and I really enjoyed the reading of this in a classy and visually appealing format.
My only criticism is her timeline and and how she jumped around chapter or snippet to snippet. While she acknowledges this in small print at the book's end which I read before starting, it still felt gathered after the fact which jarred a little. Given her distance from all that happened, it seems simple laziness on her part not to have stitched it together in a more readable fashion.
But that is really pettiness on my part as it is a good read.
For anyone familiar with Paris, this is a lot of fun to read and I jotted down many vocabulary words in addition to salient addresses. I was amused by many of her anecdotes and read them aloud to great laughter. She is an engaging and witty recorder of events and situations and I really enjoyed the reading of this in a classy and visually appealing format.
My only criticism is her timeline and and how she jumped around chapter or snippet to snippet. While she acknowledges this in small print at the book's end which I read before starting, it still felt gathered after the fact which jarred a little. Given her distance from all that happened, it seems simple laziness on her part not to have stitched it together in a more readable fashion.
But that is really pettiness on my part as it is a good read.
November 24, 2014
A part-memoir, part-travelogue, written by Jane Paech who spent 6 years living in Paris with her then husband and two young daughters. Delightful read and even if you're not planning to live there, very informative about the Parisian way of life, the "natives" and things you need to know regardless of the time you spend there. Interesting insight into the differences between the Australian and French education systems, which for one of Jane's daughters in particular proved an initially traumatic experience. It's easy to see how over the course of her sojourn in the city of light, Jane fell completely in love with the place, despite the various problems she encountered, and when it came time to leave it was a painful emotional uprooting. However she's since been back and although going back is never the same, it's always good to rediscover old haunts and potentially find new ones.
June 4, 2012
interesting, but a little awkward. it's about a family from Australia that moved to Paris for 6 years, and is half memoir, half travel book -- but there's not enough memoir to really make it interesting, and all the travel details slows it down - but it's also too long and bulky to be a good travel resource. i guess if you were going to go to Paris for a long period of time it would be worth reading -- I've always had a fear of going places where I don't know the language, and this book reinforced my fear of going to Paris because it really gets into the cultural expectations, and how easy it is to say or do the wrong thing - I would not do well!
September 9, 2012
Found this "new book" and took it home to look at the pictures. Read it cover to cover and was fascinated by looking at Paris not as a tourist but from the perspective of a Australian family living in Paris due to job transfer. Who knew...all these fun foodie facts, history stories, idiotic French procedures...all told in a page here, paragraph there and sprinkled all over with websites, pictures, addresses and more. Better than Fodor's or Frommer's and could only be improved on by including a plane ticket.
June 23, 2016
An Australian family moves to Paris because of the husband's job. This is an account of how they live, manage and discover living in Paris. It has some of the gritty details, but lacks some. The author balances the negatives, like French bureauracy, with the positives, like the cultural experiences. I really enjoyed all the pictures, just felt that this book had fewer details than I would have liked. There is no account really of how their lives changed because of this experience, and few of how they felt when they went through all the must-sees of Paris.
September 4, 2011
I absolutely LOVED this book. I have lived in Paris briefly and always wanted to return. This book was extremely enlightening to me. I finished it and instantly felt sad and longed to meet the author and befriend her, a real testament to how winning her voice is. I look forward to reading more of her work and giving this book as a present to my Francophile friends.
January 12, 2013
The very brief time I spent in Paris seems to really "fit" how out-of-place that beautiful city can make you feel if you are NOT Parisian. The author give so many revelations on where you should spend you time rather than visiting all the tourist spots. This book will be my guide if I ever get the chance to go back.
May 14, 2013
Nice pictures, bloody awful read. There are so many other great books out there about living in France and/or Paris - this one is such a let down. The author's narrative voice and her 'insights' are nothing short annoying. Many of the tips and hints about the French and life in France are heavily borrowed from other books. Borrow it from your library for the pictures, but don't waste your money.
September 21, 2011
This is a lovely coffee table style book with beautiful photography and courageous stories. Particularly inspiring as the author stepped away from her nursing career in Australia to support her husband in an overseas move....and decided to become an author along the way!
June 1, 2012
This is a must-read for those of us who love to find out more about the reality of living in Paris. Jane Paech documents her troubles with her kids'schooling, the language and la mentalite francaise which can be exasperating at times. It is a fascinating journey into Parisian life
February 4, 2013
I have read this book over many weeks. It was always delightful to pick it up and become familiar again with Jane and her family. To me it was the next best thing to actually being in Paris - I loved this book.
July 9, 2011
A Mother's Day present
September 13, 2011
A visual feast, and a realistic look at an Australian family attempting to live in Paris. No more Paris Syndrome for me after reading this.
Read
June 4, 2012Lovely book to read but makes me a but glad it was her family moved to Paris, not mine! I found the ending a little sad...
June 24, 2013
I loved this book! The page design and photographs are gorgeous. I learned many interesting details about Paris even though I have been there many times.
June 12, 2013
Great details of everyday places to visit. Good insight into how Aust kids cope? In French school system. Use with my classes here.
August 14, 2023
Took me way longer than expected to finish it but it was so lovely
August 3, 2015
realistic, funny,short chapters make it easy to read.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews