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C'est la Vie: An American Woman Begins a New Life in Paris and--Voila!--Becomes Almost French
Bestselling writer Suzy Gershman (dubbed “Super Shopper Suzy” by Oprah) is our answer to Peter Mayle in this heartfelt, breezy, and funny story of starting over in Paris. Suzy had always fantasized about moving to Paris with her husband, but when he dies unexpectedly, she decides to fulfill their dream alone. Here she gives a deliciously conversational chronicle of her first year in Paris and of the dizzying delights and maddening frustrations of learning to be a Parisian. Filled with Gershman’s insider’s tips on everything from cooking the perfect clafoutis to—naturally—shopping, C’est la Vie is delightfully entertaining and captures the exhilarating experience of beginning a new adventure.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 187 reviews
June 6, 2011
Okay, okay. So I came upon this book in my house here that we rented out, so thankfully I never bought this piece of crap. I have to say that this may be the worst book I have ever read. I'm going to give out spoilers here cause I am hoping that you will never ever ever read this shitty book. I'm not even done with it, and I can tell you that no matter what happens, this book will never redeem itself. So, first off, this stupid book is based on an autobiography. Which means that this woman actually exists. Which kind of makes me sad for humanity.
It starts out simple enough, with an older american couple wanting to retire to Paris in their later years. But then the husband dies. So what does the wife (and sad [and by sad I don't mean depressed] main character) do? Does she mourn her husband? Does she try to help her 19 year old son cope with his father's death? No and no. She whisks herself off to Paris in hopes to start a new life. She even states that later in the book, although she is on antidepressants after her husband's death, she's actually very happy she got the chance to finally move to Paris. Excuse me, what? Did you really not care about your husband? His death was a good excuse? Lady I think you need antipsychotics not antidepressants.
To make this book oh-so-much better this woman is (and in real life) the writer of something called "Born to Shop." Now I had never heard of this before this book, but what I've gathered from reading this senseless drivel is that she travels from city to city and writes articles about where the best shopping places are. Wow. Thanks for devoting your life to something amazing.
Apparently "born to shop" is not very cost-efficient because this woman decides to throw down $10,000 just for FURNITURE. She spent $2,000 on a freakin hutch. All the while complaining about how she can't afford this or that. Now, one of my biggest pet peeves is when people complain about money and then spend it all on STUPID THINGS. Priorities people! Self control! What ever happened to these things?! Now this woman is obviously not broke. Albeit this was when the dollar was about equal to the Euro but that makes it worse! I mean, nowadays, you could easily spend a lot of DOLLARS on things in France. But this was when the Dollar was equal to the Euro! Its the same!! Ahh!
Another things that bothered me is her want to become 'french' while almost ignoring the fact that she NEEDS TO LEARN THE LANGUAGE. She makes no effort at all, seems to have a faint grasp of it, knows some idioms, and I'm sure she gets better at the end of the book, but she's not even acting like its a problem. And well, it wouldn't be if she wanted to be a normal French citizen, but she ends up trying to join the highest social circles in France. She states that she doesn't want to join any of the circles with too many expats, but when it comes to social circles, hers is in high society. It really makes me wonder, how a woman who shops for a living can get such a freakin big ego. C'mon lady, what are you entitled to here?
To top it off, I just got to the part about her birthday. She states, and I will type this verbatim: "I have long thought that my birthday should be a national holiday. I love not only my birthday, but the two weeks around it when i receive calls and gifts and luncheon invitations and bask in the glory of the dawning spring season." And then she goes on to state that she feels so alone in Paris, but then her friend calls her up and throws a party for her so its all good. I'm sorry. But after the age of maybe 12...I stopped expecting OTHER PEOPLE to throw parties for ME. I was pretty sure that most people host their own birthday parties, and that very rarely do people just throw another person a party. But she expects multiple people to do it.
Ugh, okay, I'm going to be less cynical now and get to the point. It's just that this woman holds such a huge idea of entitlement. It's something that frustrates me. She seems so haute-classe, but shes not...she even states that shes too boring and fashionably senseless for the people she hangs out with. She really just sounds to me like a groupie to the 'cool kids.' And that makes me sad. Ugh, I wish I could put this into words better, but its 2am and I'm getting over the stomach flu (which is a good part of this reason this is such a grumpy review).
I don't know, she tries so hard for stupid things, when I think she should care more about the people around her. She worries more about if her apartment will be designed in the same fashion as her Connecticut house when her son visits, and about being a 'cool mom' that it doesn't seem like she's someone he can talk to about her husband's death. I mean thats a big deal. I know that if my father died sophomore year of college I would have been devastated. I almost feel like for a woman who tries to be so social, she's not very good at understanding people. She actually reminds me of the mother in mean girls. "You girls keep me young!"
Well now I'm rambling so I'll stop. But my main point is that this is a horrible book. The main character is vapid, unlikable and careless in her actions. Plus she has an ego the size of Russia. So no, I would never ever recommend this for anyone. Go read David Sedaris. He says much more sensible things about France, and he's funny and egotistical in a good way.
It starts out simple enough, with an older american couple wanting to retire to Paris in their later years. But then the husband dies. So what does the wife (and sad [and by sad I don't mean depressed] main character) do? Does she mourn her husband? Does she try to help her 19 year old son cope with his father's death? No and no. She whisks herself off to Paris in hopes to start a new life. She even states that later in the book, although she is on antidepressants after her husband's death, she's actually very happy she got the chance to finally move to Paris. Excuse me, what? Did you really not care about your husband? His death was a good excuse? Lady I think you need antipsychotics not antidepressants.
To make this book oh-so-much better this woman is (and in real life) the writer of something called "Born to Shop." Now I had never heard of this before this book, but what I've gathered from reading this senseless drivel is that she travels from city to city and writes articles about where the best shopping places are. Wow. Thanks for devoting your life to something amazing.
Apparently "born to shop" is not very cost-efficient because this woman decides to throw down $10,000 just for FURNITURE. She spent $2,000 on a freakin hutch. All the while complaining about how she can't afford this or that. Now, one of my biggest pet peeves is when people complain about money and then spend it all on STUPID THINGS. Priorities people! Self control! What ever happened to these things?! Now this woman is obviously not broke. Albeit this was when the dollar was about equal to the Euro but that makes it worse! I mean, nowadays, you could easily spend a lot of DOLLARS on things in France. But this was when the Dollar was equal to the Euro! Its the same!! Ahh!
Another things that bothered me is her want to become 'french' while almost ignoring the fact that she NEEDS TO LEARN THE LANGUAGE. She makes no effort at all, seems to have a faint grasp of it, knows some idioms, and I'm sure she gets better at the end of the book, but she's not even acting like its a problem. And well, it wouldn't be if she wanted to be a normal French citizen, but she ends up trying to join the highest social circles in France. She states that she doesn't want to join any of the circles with too many expats, but when it comes to social circles, hers is in high society. It really makes me wonder, how a woman who shops for a living can get such a freakin big ego. C'mon lady, what are you entitled to here?
To top it off, I just got to the part about her birthday. She states, and I will type this verbatim: "I have long thought that my birthday should be a national holiday. I love not only my birthday, but the two weeks around it when i receive calls and gifts and luncheon invitations and bask in the glory of the dawning spring season." And then she goes on to state that she feels so alone in Paris, but then her friend calls her up and throws a party for her so its all good. I'm sorry. But after the age of maybe 12...I stopped expecting OTHER PEOPLE to throw parties for ME. I was pretty sure that most people host their own birthday parties, and that very rarely do people just throw another person a party. But she expects multiple people to do it.
Ugh, okay, I'm going to be less cynical now and get to the point. It's just that this woman holds such a huge idea of entitlement. It's something that frustrates me. She seems so haute-classe, but shes not...she even states that shes too boring and fashionably senseless for the people she hangs out with. She really just sounds to me like a groupie to the 'cool kids.' And that makes me sad. Ugh, I wish I could put this into words better, but its 2am and I'm getting over the stomach flu (which is a good part of this reason this is such a grumpy review).
I don't know, she tries so hard for stupid things, when I think she should care more about the people around her. She worries more about if her apartment will be designed in the same fashion as her Connecticut house when her son visits, and about being a 'cool mom' that it doesn't seem like she's someone he can talk to about her husband's death. I mean thats a big deal. I know that if my father died sophomore year of college I would have been devastated. I almost feel like for a woman who tries to be so social, she's not very good at understanding people. She actually reminds me of the mother in mean girls. "You girls keep me young!"
Well now I'm rambling so I'll stop. But my main point is that this is a horrible book. The main character is vapid, unlikable and careless in her actions. Plus she has an ego the size of Russia. So no, I would never ever recommend this for anyone. Go read David Sedaris. He says much more sensible things about France, and he's funny and egotistical in a good way.
June 30, 2008
Having grown up as an American in Paris, I thought I would find this look at French life from the perspective of an American interesting, but much of the book seems to be less about the woman's experience in France and with the French culture than it is about her shopping expeditions and minglings with socialite, both of which I found terribly boring and hard to relate to. I didn't even finish the book I was so bored. Good premise but this could have been a lot more.
January 17, 2012
I got this book because I gravitate towards stories about American women moving to Paris. I long to go to Paris and to read about the experiences of other women makes me feel as close to Paris as I'm going to get for now. The only problem is that no matter what the story is its always the story about an upper middle class or rich women moving to Paris after having been there several times for family vacations and business trips. I would really like to hear about a story where an "average" American women moves to Paris not knowing anything about the city or country excepts from thins she has read in books or saw in movies.
This memoir was okay for what it was. I expected a sad story especially since her husband had recently died and she needed to start all over. I was surprised to read about how quickly she seemed to get over her husband and to go into a relationship with a married man, no matter how "separated" he was from his wife. I did enjoy the how she struggled with the real-estate and the language. I enjoyed learning about how an American would need to adjust to the way of living. And I really liked that the format was sectioning the book into the different seasons. However I don't think that I like this person. I don't think that we would have much in common and it wouldn't be just because of the age difference. I don't think we would have a lot to talk about over croissants. The book offered a lot of information that you're not going t get from a movie or a novel but the personality of the woman writing it was not someone I could relate to.
This memoir was okay for what it was. I expected a sad story especially since her husband had recently died and she needed to start all over. I was surprised to read about how quickly she seemed to get over her husband and to go into a relationship with a married man, no matter how "separated" he was from his wife. I did enjoy the how she struggled with the real-estate and the language. I enjoyed learning about how an American would need to adjust to the way of living. And I really liked that the format was sectioning the book into the different seasons. However I don't think that I like this person. I don't think that we would have much in common and it wouldn't be just because of the age difference. I don't think we would have a lot to talk about over croissants. The book offered a lot of information that you're not going t get from a movie or a novel but the personality of the woman writing it was not someone I could relate to.
June 27, 2007
After reading several books on suicide and grief, being the surviving spouse of someone who had just recently ended their life, I felt I needed something light to read. Normally I read the back cover and the first few pages before buying a book, but in this case I didn't. I saw the cover, I love Paris, it looked like a light read. So I bought it, headed to the nearest coffee shop and settled in to read some fluff. Imagine my surprise when on the first page I read that she moved to Paris after the death of her husband. Damn. But, it was a great read and I've recommended it to others who love Paris.
Suzy had always fantasized about moving to Paris with her husband, but when he dies unexpectedly, she decides to fulfill their dream alone. Here she gives a deliciously conversational chronicle of her first year in Paris and of the dizzying delights and maddening frustrations of learning to be a Parisian. Filled with insider’s tips on everything from cooking the perfect clafoutis to shopping, C’est la Vie is delightfully entertaining and captures the exhilarating experience of beginning a new adventure.
Suzy had always fantasized about moving to Paris with her husband, but when he dies unexpectedly, she decides to fulfill their dream alone. Here she gives a deliciously conversational chronicle of her first year in Paris and of the dizzying delights and maddening frustrations of learning to be a Parisian. Filled with insider’s tips on everything from cooking the perfect clafoutis to shopping, C’est la Vie is delightfully entertaining and captures the exhilarating experience of beginning a new adventure.
July 5, 2007
42. "Bestselling writer Suzy Gershman (dubbed "Super Shopper Suzy" by Oprah) is our answer to Peter Mayle in this heartfelt, breezy, and funny story of starting over in Paris. Suzy had always fantasized about moving to Paris with her husband, but when he dies unexpectedly, she decides to fulfill their dream alone. Here she gives a deliciously conversational chronicle of her first year in Paris and of the dizzying delights and maddening frustrations of learning to be a Parisian. Filled with Gershman's insider's tips on everything from cooking the perfect clafoutis to - naturally - shopping, C'est la Vie is delightfully entertaining and captures the exhilarating experience of beginning a new adventure."
I was disappointed. I found this book to be pretentious and overbearing. A middle-aged woman sporadically trying to pass herself off as young and hip through her writing. A dull sling-fest of famous names (or supposedly) and designer labels.
I was disappointed. I found this book to be pretentious and overbearing. A middle-aged woman sporadically trying to pass herself off as young and hip through her writing. A dull sling-fest of famous names (or supposedly) and designer labels.
October 28, 2012
This is one of the books I found through PaperBack Swap recommendations after reading Entre Nous and giddily requested it hoping for a similarly pleasant experience. It was tough going at first. By page 70 I was thoroughly annoyed with Ms. Gershman because at that point the book read more like a shopping instruction manual with endless mentions of Born to Shop and incessant dropping of names of famous people and brands that began bordering in pretentious. "Is this really who you are, Suzy?" I kept thinking. I get it, this is her life and her social circle, but had it not been for brief glimmers of hope in the form of short entries that actually talked about Paris and the French lifestyle and people unrelated to luxury merchandise and who's who of the Parisian "it" list I would have given up and moved on. I did stick with it though and was rewarded with longer chapters that gave me what I came to Ms. Gershman for - a glimpse of her experience living the French life.
As the book progressed and the chapters got longer and less healfhearted Ms. Gershman's personality began to come through and I began to see something in her that was more than a woman spending away her husband's life insurance money. I could see a practical woman having a hard time but determined to not fall apart, a woman rediscovering and reinventing herself, following her dream and doing it in a foreign country and in a foreign language at that. I liked her spunk and that she had standards and an unfailing sense of humor. I enjoyed her stories about holidays, cooking French deserts for the first time, making new friends and dealing with the internal conflict of nurturing herself and worrying about her son's reaction to her choices. These were real stories and I preferred them to the tales about buying overpriced designer sheets.
This isn't your typical book about starting over in France with the author struggling to make connections outside of the expatriate community or being unreservedly enamored with the French. Ms. Gershman arrived in Paris with a well-established network already in place, she had money, and her lack of fascination with Parisian style is obvious and refreshing. She is unabashedly American and is not trying to blend in. She speaks frankly and in detail about the charm of having an affair and her disenchantment with it, as well as medical issues and the difficulties of navigating the French bureaucratic systems. There is not a gossipy feel like in All You Need to be Impossibly French or the reserved distance like in Entre Nous. It is actually more like Almost French in that the authors see the good and the bad clearly and appreciate France for what it is. I wonder whether these two ladies know each other - they are both freelance journalists and they arrived in Paris at the same time (imagine my surprise when I realized this).
This is a fun book and had the first half been more like the second I would have enjoyed it much more. As it is I would recommend it to those who is moving to Paris or is entertaining the notion, those enjoy shopping, or those who want to see what it's like to live in France. I'm with the last group and some day soon will continue the vicarious adventure.
For more of my reviews visit Bibliophile's Corner
As the book progressed and the chapters got longer and less healfhearted Ms. Gershman's personality began to come through and I began to see something in her that was more than a woman spending away her husband's life insurance money. I could see a practical woman having a hard time but determined to not fall apart, a woman rediscovering and reinventing herself, following her dream and doing it in a foreign country and in a foreign language at that. I liked her spunk and that she had standards and an unfailing sense of humor. I enjoyed her stories about holidays, cooking French deserts for the first time, making new friends and dealing with the internal conflict of nurturing herself and worrying about her son's reaction to her choices. These were real stories and I preferred them to the tales about buying overpriced designer sheets.
This isn't your typical book about starting over in France with the author struggling to make connections outside of the expatriate community or being unreservedly enamored with the French. Ms. Gershman arrived in Paris with a well-established network already in place, she had money, and her lack of fascination with Parisian style is obvious and refreshing. She is unabashedly American and is not trying to blend in. She speaks frankly and in detail about the charm of having an affair and her disenchantment with it, as well as medical issues and the difficulties of navigating the French bureaucratic systems. There is not a gossipy feel like in All You Need to be Impossibly French or the reserved distance like in Entre Nous. It is actually more like Almost French in that the authors see the good and the bad clearly and appreciate France for what it is. I wonder whether these two ladies know each other - they are both freelance journalists and they arrived in Paris at the same time (imagine my surprise when I realized this).
This is a fun book and had the first half been more like the second I would have enjoyed it much more. As it is I would recommend it to those who is moving to Paris or is entertaining the notion, those enjoy shopping, or those who want to see what it's like to live in France. I'm with the last group and some day soon will continue the vicarious adventure.
For more of my reviews visit Bibliophile's Corner
October 11, 2014
I'm not sure why I have this fascination for France (Paris, for the most part) as most of my ancestors came from Ireland. Yet, it is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore my growing pile of books on this subject, the latest being C'est La Vie by Suzy Gershman. To be honest, my intention was to multitask and read about both Paris and shopping (Ms. Gershman authors the "Born To Shop" series of books) but I ended up immersed in the year of her life following her husband's death. She moves to Paris and starts rebuilding a life for herself, sharing the difficulties of going on and the challenges in moving to a new country when you are not fluent in the language. Ultimately, it sends a message of hope...you're never to old to learn French, it's never too late to realize your dreams, and even when you didn't think it was possible, you can always find happiness again. Her struggles with with cultural differences and European appliances are amusing, but don't be fooled -- she packs a lot of tips on what to watch out for and how to navigate the landscape if you are considering a move to Paris. I highly recommend this book and spent a very pleasant afternoon getting to know Ms. Gershman. You can't help but like and admire her.
September 24, 2009
Unfortunately, this book just wasn't what I was hoping for. I think that someone who is actually moving to Paris would find this book much more helpful as it is basically a guide book written in a different form. There was a lot (A LOT) of information about finding an apartment, what to expect, what to do (and not do), etc. There was also a lot about buying items, what is cheaper in America than in Paris, etc. I was hoping to live vicariously through the author, but I was rather bored and after awhile, just skimmed through it until I put it down for good. So, if you are moving to Paris, this would probably be a very handy book for you. However, if you are not, and are not looking for a guide book of sorts, I recommend not bothering with reading this.
July 25, 2012
I would not recommend this book unless you are a rich snob, or if you are personally friends with this author. This woman is unbelievable. It's fun to imagine starting a new life, renting and furnishing a new apartment in Paris, and learning about the social norms of the new place, but who can identify with this kind of starting over, when you are known at all of the posh hotels, call ALAIN DUCASSE your friend, phone DORIE GREENSPAN for baking advice and have an affair with a Count? Not relate-able. And then this dope with fancy chef friends hardly says anything about the food she eats in France, but mentions several times the horrible American junk food she imports (she actually takes CANS OF PRE-MADE ICING to France!!) Ohhlala...
September 26, 2012
I picked this up at a used book store after visiting my daughter in France while she was studying there for a semester. I liked how the author explained her experiences moving to Paris and how she was able to set up a new life in a country that chooses to live a slower pace with different priorities than those the author was used to in America. What I didn't like was her attitude about dead husband and the freedom she now had to make her own choices. I found myself wincing at times after reading comments about this husband she supposedly loved so dearly for many years. Overall, I enjoyed the book for what I could learn about this country that I found so beautiful and other-worldly when I went there.
September 9, 2013
51 year old widow moves to paris.....the book is about her first year living there and all the problems she encounters. It's a true story and I had a hard time liking her. At times I felt she was very negative about not only the French culture but others as well. Also, she was able to move to Paris because she had a hefty life insurance policy from the death of her husband. Having been to Paris several times I was able to re-live some of the lovely streets and cafes she talks about which for me made the only good part about the book.
January 12, 2026
with a pending trip to Paris, I want to read as much as I can about Paris. In this case, the author was trying a year in Paris with the notion of moving there from the Ststes permanently. She had traveled there many times for work, and being suddenly widowed., she went forth with the plans. I learned more than I need to know about acquiring an apartment, but also learned a good amount about the economies of daily living. Being in a quite comfortable income level, she joined a social circle of ex-pats and locals who introduced her to a busy party life. I feel I was introduced to at least a small sense of Parisian lifestyle for one set of residents. on now to more books and a wider picture ....
December 23, 2020
In which fifty-two-year-old author Suzy Gershman is unexpectedly widowed and moves to Paris. I'm not sure what it is about these authors who move to Paris - other than the fact that it is Paris - but this is the second book I've read...and not liked.
Admittedly, a large part of the problem was that I really did not like Gershman. It bothered me that she up and moved to Paris and left her 20-year-old college student student son to cope on his own only weeks after his father died; it bothered me that six months after her husband died she took up with a married man 20 years her elder; it bothered me that she fretted about money while lunching at the Ritz and the Georges V (constantly reminding her readers that she is not a woman of independent means!); and it bothered me that she could not go a single chapter without including a reference to the books she wrote that evidently made her famous (the Born to Shop series...I'd never heard of it before). Also the name dropping nearly put me over the edge.
In the plus column, she writes about Paris as only one who loves the city can and the book is a very quick read. Also, it's possible that I'm just jealous of people who can drop everything and move to Paris...but I don't think that's it.
(I just looked her up and discovered she died the summer before I read this of cancer. Now I feel a little bad. But trust me: the name dropping was over-the-top.)
Admittedly, a large part of the problem was that I really did not like Gershman. It bothered me that she up and moved to Paris and left her 20-year-old college student student son to cope on his own only weeks after his father died; it bothered me that six months after her husband died she took up with a married man 20 years her elder; it bothered me that she fretted about money while lunching at the Ritz and the Georges V (constantly reminding her readers that she is not a woman of independent means!); and it bothered me that she could not go a single chapter without including a reference to the books she wrote that evidently made her famous (the Born to Shop series...I'd never heard of it before). Also the name dropping nearly put me over the edge.
In the plus column, she writes about Paris as only one who loves the city can and the book is a very quick read. Also, it's possible that I'm just jealous of people who can drop everything and move to Paris...but I don't think that's it.
(I just looked her up and discovered she died the summer before I read this of cancer. Now I feel a little bad. But trust me: the name dropping was over-the-top.)
February 7, 2021
This book.... well.... hmmm.
I want to be kind here. This is a memoir, a slice of someones life, that they have pulled the curtain back on and shown us. This should be an intimate, personal thing. It can be full of all sorts of things- humor, sadness, frustrations, adventure, love, loss, hope.... and on and on forever. But this seems to contain nothing but shopping lists and an odd flatness.
When this authors husband dies she picks up and moves to Paris, leaving her college age son in the United States and sets up shop out of France. There could be charm there. There could be meaningful thoughts on grief, moving on, having ones own independent life from ones children, being a stranger in a strange land, of seeing behind the romantic curtain.
Instead we get.... well, this. A book that reads shallow and artificial, which never achieves the humor it aspires to. The author seems to gloss right over anything that could make this more personal, but instead jumps into the frustrations, joys, and glamour of living in Paris. It seems self congragulatory, and devoid of real feeling.
I don't blame the author if she does not want to write a meditation on grief. That is a highly personal thing, and not nessisarily for public consumption, but the story keeps teasing us with deeper subjects, and then dances away, telling us how much she spent or saved on French housewares.
Ah well. C'est La Vie.
I want to be kind here. This is a memoir, a slice of someones life, that they have pulled the curtain back on and shown us. This should be an intimate, personal thing. It can be full of all sorts of things- humor, sadness, frustrations, adventure, love, loss, hope.... and on and on forever. But this seems to contain nothing but shopping lists and an odd flatness.
When this authors husband dies she picks up and moves to Paris, leaving her college age son in the United States and sets up shop out of France. There could be charm there. There could be meaningful thoughts on grief, moving on, having ones own independent life from ones children, being a stranger in a strange land, of seeing behind the romantic curtain.
Instead we get.... well, this. A book that reads shallow and artificial, which never achieves the humor it aspires to. The author seems to gloss right over anything that could make this more personal, but instead jumps into the frustrations, joys, and glamour of living in Paris. It seems self congragulatory, and devoid of real feeling.
I don't blame the author if she does not want to write a meditation on grief. That is a highly personal thing, and not nessisarily for public consumption, but the story keeps teasing us with deeper subjects, and then dances away, telling us how much she spent or saved on French housewares.
Ah well. C'est La Vie.
February 17, 2011
This book started on a sad note with the death of her husband, but improved along the way. She is a name dropper and has had a busy travelers/writers life. Moving to France was an experience that she worked hard at doing. The book is well written and quick to read. The loss of her husband is sad, but she deals the best she can and rises above the pain. Her friends are a great support system for her and she develops more in the first year there. Her son has a hard time with the move and a lack of a 'home'.
I enjoyed the story and hope the best for the author in the future. Less name dropping would have been nice. This reminded me a bit of Eat Pray Love, without all the whining and complaining. This author did her best to make a bad situation good. She embraced life and all the things that came along the way. Fast, cute, sweet, and a good distraction from everyday life.
I enjoyed the story and hope the best for the author in the future. Less name dropping would have been nice. This reminded me a bit of Eat Pray Love, without all the whining and complaining. This author did her best to make a bad situation good. She embraced life and all the things that came along the way. Fast, cute, sweet, and a good distraction from everyday life.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 9, 2010
Ho hum. The author is disillusioned....and not my style of an American living abroad. $10,000 to set up her apartment??? $75 for a flat sheet?? Hmmm....insane.
And then....she states that having an affair in France with a married man, is not a problem.
And THEN she claims buttermilk doesn't exist in France....groaning the whole time. There were some good comments, but not many.
"I always knew that one day I would live in France. This was not a dream on my part, but a fact of life, not whispered in the winds of change, but firmly written on the mistral of my life."
She moves to France 6 weeks after her husband dies....and sets up home.
And then....she states that having an affair in France with a married man, is not a problem.
And THEN she claims buttermilk doesn't exist in France....groaning the whole time. There were some good comments, but not many.
"I always knew that one day I would live in France. This was not a dream on my part, but a fact of life, not whispered in the winds of change, but firmly written on the mistral of my life."
She moves to France 6 weeks after her husband dies....and sets up home.
October 21, 2019
This is a short non-fictional book of one widow's move to Paris shortly after her husband died. It reads like a novel and tells us about her largely positive experiences in Paris and with Parisians. However, it also provides some very useful insight to what it's like to move across continents and the peculiarities of an American adjusting to life in Paris.
I've read a lot of negative reviews about this book and about this author who is now deceased herself. I can hardly believe I read the same book as those people saying negative things but c'est la vie (pun intended).
I've read a lot of negative reviews about this book and about this author who is now deceased herself. I can hardly believe I read the same book as those people saying negative things but c'est la vie (pun intended).
March 26, 2009
I enjoyed this book about an American woman who moved to Paris after her husband died. It's autobiographical and filled with fabulously shallow observations. The author writes a series of books called Born to Shop so shopping is obviously important to her. Name dropping of all the wonderful important people she knows and comparisons between America and France are frequent. Still, I enjoyed it for a light read about starting a new life in France.
April 19, 2009
An American in Paris. Well, that story has been done many times, obviously. But Gershman, writing of her first year living in Paris after her husband' death, is likeable. There is nothing original or wowing here, but if you like this genre, the book is a quick, enjoyable read.
November 20, 2011
I really enjoyed this book. This book is what I wanted "Under the Tuscan Sun" and "Eat Pray Love" to be, but they fell short. This author is actually likeable. She did a great job describing life in France.
Want to read
July 5, 2010This book intrigues me since I just was in Paris recently...
May 15, 2013
Excellent! Entertaining and informative. Great, effortless writer.
May 4, 2015
I liked this book because it was like taking a trip to France! An interesting read for someone who has ever considered or wondered what it would be like to live in Paris.
October 30, 2012
Funny and sassy. A widow makes a new life for herself in the City of Light.
October 13, 2025
Not what I had expected, but I had never heard of the "Born to Shop" franchise before reading this book. I would not like to know this person, which makes it hard to be objective about the book.
If you view it as the experience of a woman who sees the whole world in terms of shopping - kind of fun. Disturbing, but fun. Suzy does have a few interesting vignettes to share about life in France. She likes to show off her friends as though they too were possessions, apologizing at length for knowing people who were not quite "the thing", but she merely enjoyed spending time with.
She decided against spending a major holiday with some of her dearest friends, which kind of sums her up for me. She thought it would be just too sad to be with 2 other widows and a pet.
If they were rich and famous, she might have felt differently.
She gave no thought at all for how others might be feeling, and throughout the book - no interest at all in other people (other than her son) as people. To be fair, she was mourning the loss of her husband while writing this book and so was not, I hope, fully herself.
If you view it as the experience of a woman who sees the whole world in terms of shopping - kind of fun. Disturbing, but fun. Suzy does have a few interesting vignettes to share about life in France. She likes to show off her friends as though they too were possessions, apologizing at length for knowing people who were not quite "the thing", but she merely enjoyed spending time with.
She decided against spending a major holiday with some of her dearest friends, which kind of sums her up for me. She thought it would be just too sad to be with 2 other widows and a pet.
If they were rich and famous, she might have felt differently.
She gave no thought at all for how others might be feeling, and throughout the book - no interest at all in other people (other than her son) as people. To be fair, she was mourning the loss of her husband while writing this book and so was not, I hope, fully herself.
November 6, 2017
Got book at thrift store. Have nothing in common with this woman, totally different priorities, way of life. The importance of designer labels, being judged by clothing and accessories. I read it with a somewhat morbid fascination. I admired her guts in making the move. The tony restaurants, food, all blurred into one for me; ditto the hotels. Fascinating search for a suitable apartment. Appalled at what she spent on furnishings, especially lamps.
Only thing I could relate to was her adopting a mongrel spaniel and her pleasure in it, and the dog's pleasure in walks and socializing.
She was/is on meds, anti-depressants, and she seems manic most of the time.
And with all the shopping she did, she never bought a measuring cup or measuring spoons for American recipes, and altho she mastered the metric system, she never bothered to figure out how to convert amounts so she could use the French measuring cups.
Also thot it was gutsy she drank Coke at cafes instead of wine.
Only thing I could relate to was her adopting a mongrel spaniel and her pleasure in it, and the dog's pleasure in walks and socializing.
She was/is on meds, anti-depressants, and she seems manic most of the time.
And with all the shopping she did, she never bought a measuring cup or measuring spoons for American recipes, and altho she mastered the metric system, she never bothered to figure out how to convert amounts so she could use the French measuring cups.
Also thot it was gutsy she drank Coke at cafes instead of wine.
July 26, 2017
I have a secret dream to move to Paris. When I'm retired. This book let me do that vicariously through a 50-something woman. Suzy Gershman traveled the world during her career as a journalist who wrote the Born to Shop guide books. After her husband died of cancer, she left her life in Connecticut and tried a year in Paris, just to see if that's what she really wanted. This book documents that year. It brought to mind so many of the things I experienced moving to Luxembourg, especially finding an apartment and then paying crazy amounts of money to get into that apartment. The rest I believe was a lot harder for her since she was forced to speak a lot of French and I have been able to use English quite a bit. Still, really fun to get a peek into what it might really be like someday ... when I move to Paris with my sister when we are 80. That's the plan!
June 13, 2024
This memoir languished on my shelves since before the pandemic. So I tackled it. Or glided into it. Sweetness lingers in this book even when she's frustrated. Suzy admits to lack of experience when she meets a new romantic prospect. How is she inexperienced when she was married for so many years? In her mind, she lacked experience and had to leave the romance because the passion dwindled because of his inattentiveness.
Apparently, the Born to Shop series have enduring popularity. I hadn't heard of them before reading this book. It saddened me when I looked up Suzy Gershman, I learned that she had died in 2012 from brain cancer. Agonizing way to die. Godspeed, Ms. Gershman.
Apparently, the Born to Shop series have enduring popularity. I hadn't heard of them before reading this book. It saddened me when I looked up Suzy Gershman, I learned that she had died in 2012 from brain cancer. Agonizing way to die. Godspeed, Ms. Gershman.
November 10, 2017
I loved her Born to Shop series and even planned trips around her suggestions. Then she was widowed and wrote this book about her life after the series, as a widow in Paris. Glad her husband was well insured -- she did things up extravagantly in an apartment and THEN bought a house in the countryside. I read her obituary online and discovered she returned to San Antonio and died within a couple of years.
A light read and a fantasy for most of us. I'm still shopping.
A light read and a fantasy for most of us. I'm still shopping.
December 22, 2017
I am probably a bit partial, but I loved this book. Suzy Gershman is hilarious - she has a wonderful sense of humor. This is supposed to be the first of a series, so I am anxious for the next one. She takes you through the loss of her husband to moving to another country, to making a new life, to her first french love affair, to coming to terms with the end of her first year as a widow. What a ride!
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