Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love

by Julie Scolnik

PARIS, 1976: Twenty-year-old American student Julie Scolnik had just arrived in the City of Light to study the flute when, from across a sea of faces in the chorus of the Orchestre de Paris, she is drawn to Luc, a striking (married) French lawyer in the bass section. This moving tale of an ebullient young American and a reserved Frenchman will transport readers to the cafés, streets, and concert halls of Paris in the late seventies, and, spanning three decades, evolves from deep romance to sudden heartbreak, and finally to a lifelong quest for answers to release hidden, immutable grief.

Against a magical backdrop of Paris and classical music, Paris Blue is true fairy-tale memoir (with a dark underbelly) about the tenacious grip of first love.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Biography Memoir

252 pages, Paperback

First published October 5, 2021

About the author

Paris Blue, Julie Scolnik’s debut memoir, is a story which lingered in the corridors of her psyche for more than forty years, and one which she always knew she would have to tell. Set against a magical backdrop of classical music and Paris in the late 70’s, Paris Blue is a true fairy-tale memoir (with a dark underbelly) about the tenacious grip of first love, heartache, and the role of memory in our lives. It has garnered over 18 awards and a quote from John Irving:

"Not every true story is like a good novel, but this one is. Not every memoir of first love has a satisfying ending, but this one does. The confluence of first love with becoming an artist makes this memoir special.”

Scolnik is a concert flutist and the founding artistic director of “Mistral Music,” a chamber music series which, since 1997, has been known for its virtuosic artists, imaginative programming, and the personal rapport that Scolnik establishes with her audiences.

Julie lives in Boston with her husband, physicist Michael Brower and her two cats, Daphne and Chloë. They have two adult children, also musicians. They spend almost five months a year in Eygalieres, Provence.

Reviews

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be young and in love in Paris! I’ll start by saying that I love French culture and language, so I really enjoyed the beautiful, detailed Parisan descriptions, which were an instant trip to the city-of-light without leaving my seat.

There are two love stories in this book: one with a French man, Luc, another one with music. As for the former, the book explores the question of young lost love: “When you fall in love at twenty, (…) does the heart form around the other person, like an old tree slowly absorbs a sign hung on it when it was a sapling? And then, when it's gone, do you forever feel the lack of it, feel its imprint, where it once rested?” I sympathized with the narrator —author? it's a memoir after all—and kept anxiously turning page after page, looking for an answer. The language in the novel does that; it is genuine and vulnerable. But it's the journey that matters, not the destination.

Like Luc, I think the reader falls in love with Julie´s passion for music. I’m not a musician and don’t know much of classical music, but I took the book’s suggestion and listened to the companion songs. It was an education. It made the experience richer, a treat to the senses. Inspired by the book, here’s my song recommendation along with this review, an Argentine tango called “Dos extraños” by Roberto Goyeneche (“Two strangers” in Spanish) about this common (universal, multilingual!) yearn for past love and how when revisiting it —like a old city where you once lived— it is never the same.

[Stephen Malins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a remarkable book, a story of young love and discovery which ends ups spanning a generation for a young American from Maine and a Parisian.

It's a page-turner, and it hits the spot in so many ways I think. It handled Parisian life as well as New England in a lively and refreshing manner, capturing the streets and arrondissements of the City of Light. In this respect, the book could have been a cliche but it wasn't. The book progresses along evenly and the prose is perfect: it never bogs or muddies but spins along. There is an artistry there, too, but never pretentiousness. I found myself searching up the streets on Google.

The music sequences really resonated. I've sung in symphonic orchestras myself and Julie captured the emotion of walking out and being "on stage" brilliantly. Everyone who has ever been led by a maestro will understand the music motifs and ideas.

It's also a book you can re-discover every ten years. Surely needs a movie."

[Marco Montiel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The great cities of the world often reveal themselves through the writers of those who come to live in them. Jean-Jacques Rousseau pulled the curtain on eighteenth-century Paris this way, allowing so much to be seen that he finally had to flee forever. In his "Confessions", Rousseau acknowledged that he only really existed in writing; in conversation, he insisted, he only came off as dull and annoying.

An antagonistic lover in Julie Scolnik's "Paris Blue" would like to similarly prefer to exist only in the letters he writes. Adopting an attitude suggested (although perhaps not "intended") by Derrida's famous pun, "il n’y a pas de hors-texte", the man courting the protagonist wants her to believe the text and ignore everything outside it. Blind to the subtle colors of this City of Lights, he wants her to see what he can never make her hear.

The emotional results devastate the narrator, who tells it so skillfully that readers feel the same mix of passionate love, agonizing loss, and a frustrating desire for a closure that can never come in this life. For me, it felt much like reading W. Somerset Maugham's "Of Human Bondage", a very different book that similarly deals with the pains of unrequited, even deceitful, love. Working all of this out, the narrator makes it possible for a reader to see - and, more importantly, feel - the mind of a twenty-year-old woman in a new city, dealing with the bewildering assaults of the world, especially the male part of it, that to some extent confront most women, who might feel some comprehension and perhaps even validation from the voice that the story contained in this text provides.

Readers, of course, have only the text, as Roland Barthes, along with other thinkers, pointed out many years ago, so unlike the narrator, we see protagonist and antagonist through the texts shared by the former. In this way, the narrator's love is not truly unrequited; it merely exists in a silent written space that frustrates her need to live in a world of sound. In a brilliant resolution, the narrator writes her own writing, the only possible way of bringing any kind of impossible closure to these exchanges. At the end, readers can feel the release while knowing that these texts will never actually let them go. I know that what this book made me feel will stay with me for a long time.

Thus far, literature has provided too few accounts (or bildungsro[wo]man, if you will) that lead the formation of successful women. In this case, readers see the protagonist in various stages of success, including at least one worthy of inclusion in Marvel Moreno's "En los tiempos de las amazonas", another take on how women deal with the trastornos de amor while living in Paris without ultimately becoming victims. I would like to suggest, or perhaps beg, here that Scolnik consider another book, memoir or novel, with more information about her narrator's period as an adventurer. If that one ever comes out, I will read it avidly.

By bringing together two outsiders, a woman from the Western Hemisphere with a man from the Celtic North, "Paris Blue" makes us see its protagonists' international center of culture, a place not visible to anyone else except for those attentive to Scolnik's text. Much of what readers might expect - the music, literature, visual art, architecture, scenery, the wine and cheese - appears here, all gorgeously described, but more than that readers can see the art of Paris, mirrored as it is in the artifice of the protagonist's lover. Lots to see! I'm glad to have not missed it.

[Gabi Coatsworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This memoir really resonated with me. I'm around the same age as the author, and the first time I fell in love was with an unavailable but irresistible foreigner - an American in my case. Paris played into my story too, since that's where we broke up, so I could totally relate to this young American, who is suddenly subjected to a coup de foudre. The writing conveys so much of the city, the swirling and slightly obsessional emotions (I think they're in my book too). I'm not saying this to advertise, it's just that I felt SO connected to the story.
The anguish I felt as I waited for the other shoe to drop... The relief that she found the true love of her life, who obviously "gets" her - all good.
What is it about those first intense affairs that clings to a person their whole life long? L'amour. It's irresistible...

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book I have read by this author and it provided a look into her stye. Young love and the exploration of how that love is captured in our memories. Paris Blue describes in achingly accurate detail the passions of first love and the lasting impact it can have on our lives. Her descriptions of life in Paris were so realistic that I envisioned myself sitting in the cafes, munching on a croissant, watching the world go by. Scolnik’s love story is told both in a storytelling format and through love letters. It was interesting to see them fall in love, see it end, and see how the feelings resided years later. Exploring the love of the culture, music and falling in love the author provides a clear look at her feelings and explores a little of Luc's. The book provides a vivid look at love of the language, culture, music and love itself. Where Luc did not choose love of his music, Julie does and lives her true self life. Luc on the other hand continues to search for that passion that is missing from his life and does not realize that all the money, work and women will not fulfill that passion that he has for music and will indelibly leave a hole in his life that he will continue to search to fill. Julie pursues her life with passion, love, music and learns to love herself first which reflects in her family, music and life not looking to fill any holes in her life. The author did a good job with laying out this discovery as well as trying to provide a lessons for any young readers exploring a first love. Thank you to the author, Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel.

[Donna McEachran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book for an honest review.

This book is difficult to review...it felt like reading someone's personal journal. The difference between the letter writing Luc and the actual person on occasion was very disconcerting.

[Steven Seril · Rating 5 out of 5]

Score: 93/100 (9.3 out of 10)

“Paris Blue” is a drama-filled memoir by Julie Scolnik chronicling her decade-plus, on and off romantic relationship with a Frenchman named Luc, a lover who shares Julie's passion for classical and baroque music. This book has several dimensions and layers.

This book reminds us of several books that we've read this year: “No Perfect Love” by Dr. Alyson Nerenberg (non-fiction) and “A Major League Love” by Domenic Melillo (fiction). All of these books highlight the twists and turns that life and love can take. Something unique about “Paris Blue” by Julie Scolnik, however, is that it especially highlights the “rose-tinted goggles” of idealism that lovers often have at first, leading to disappointments and shattered expectations. It's about what happens when the perfect love isn't so perfect, and it's also about a woman's journey to self-discovery.

First and foremost, "Paris Blue" is a will-they/won't-they romance about Julie and Luc. To say that this is the heart and soul of the book would be an understatement. The sexual and romantic tension is high throughout, and we are frustrated when Julie is frustrated, we are sad when Julie is sad, and we are angry when Julie is angry. We often find ourselves on Julie's side of the aisle, typical of an autobiography or memoir. It's very difficult to see things from the perspective of our other main character, Luc. In a lot of ways, he comes across to us as detestable and unlikable. In other words, this relationship almost always seems one-sided and often borders on manipulative and abusive, and we're guessing that can be a great morality tale for others to get out of these types of manipulative and abusive relationships. Remember that abuse isn't always physical, it can be mental and psychological. It comes in the form of neglect and manipulation.

The second layer or dimension of this book is how it's kind of a coming of age story about Julie, young and naive, learning to come to terms with her changing feelings, her changing body, and her changing world. We're with Julie from the age of 17—right at the cusp of becoming a full-fledged woman—and we journey with her into the middle of adulthood in which she becomes more mature, self-confident, and independent. We also see her journey as a musician, going from a hobbyist to someone who can be invited to perform at concerts.

The third layer or dimension of this book, and arguably the one we wish was further explored, is the culture shock that Julie experiences in transiting between America and France (and vice-versa). Julie absolutely detests the term “culture shock” and seems to go out of her way to avoid highlighting differences between America and France. Interestingly, Luc has the opposite point of view. Luc constantly sees America and Americans as different, and he openly criticizes and talks down about them. About a month ago, we'd read “Just Arrived” by Bona Udeze, a book about a Nigerian immigrant's interesting experiences in moving to America—full of culture shock, adapting to new foods, strange habits, and a fresh start. There's just an element of that missing with “Paris Blue.” For a book with “Paris” in the title, we don't really see or learn much about the place. It's in the background. When Julie moves to and fro Paris, it is described as just being like any other big city, not much different from Boston where she eventually ends up. She walks the streets, takes buses, goes to restaurants, and attends or performs at concerts. You could do that in New York City. You could do that in Salt Lake City. You could do that in Honolulu or London. You could do that in Sydney or Dubai. This aspect of the book remains so criminally under-explored, unfortunately, especially when compared to something like “Just Arrived”--a top-notch book about moving to a new country.

One of the things we debated in literary terms was whether or not Luc could be considered a protagonist, a secondary protagonist, a love interest, an anti-hero, or a straight-up villain—a bad guy akin to someone like the manipulative, vindictive Cynthia from “A Major League Love.” You could argue either way, or even that he's all of these things. But to us personally, he's a villain. He's only about a notch of villainy lower than Wally Mussel—the abusive, exploitative boss from “My Famous Brain” by Diane Wald. Luc is a demonic, Titanic piece of crap walking God's green earth in our opinion. Sorry. And the fact that Julie kept believing his lies and crawling back to him, especially after that knife incident in which Luc dismisses and ignores her as she's bleeding profusely, frustrates and angers us greatly. Or perhaps we're displacing some personal frustrations.

The fact of the matter is, this book is relatable. Many of us have been in relationships like this. Many of us have found ourselves afraid or unwilling to let go, even long after the point of no return. Scolnik captures that feeling perfectly.

[Ultimate World · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Review: Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love by Julie Scolnik

Paris Blue is a deeply evocative memoir that captures the intoxicating beauty—and enduring ache—of first love. In this lyrical and emotionally resonant work, Julie Scolnik transports readers to 1970s Paris, where music, longing, and fate intertwine in a story that lingers long after the final page.

At just twenty years old, Julie arrives in Paris to study the flute, filled with ambition and youthful curiosity. It is here, amid the artistic energy of the city and within the chorus of the Orchestre de Paris, that she first sees Luc—a reserved, enigmatic Frenchman whose presence immediately captivates her. Their connection is undeniable, yet complicated from the start, shadowed by the reality that Luc is married.

Scolnik’s writing beautifully captures the atmosphere of Paris in the late seventies. The cafés, concert halls, and winding streets come alive with sensory detail, creating a romantic and immersive backdrop that mirrors the intensity of Julie’s emotions. The presence of classical music throughout the narrative adds an additional layer of depth, reflecting both the harmony and dissonance of their relationship.

What begins as a passionate and almost fairy-tale romance gradually reveals its darker undercurrents. The memoir does not shy away from the complexities and consequences of their connection. Instead, it explores the emotional cost of loving someone who cannot fully belong to you. As the story unfolds over decades, the tone shifts from youthful enchantment to heartbreak and, ultimately, to a quiet, persistent search for closure.

One of the book’s most powerful elements is its honesty. Scolnik examines not only the relationship itself, but also the lasting imprint it leaves on her life. The narrative becomes less about the romance and more about memory, grief, and the enduring question of “what if.” It’s a reflection on how first love can shape identity, influence choices, and linger in unexpected ways.

Paris Blue is both romantic and haunting—a memoir that balances beauty with emotional depth. It reminds readers that first love is rarely simple, often transformative, and sometimes impossible to fully leave behind.

Elegant, reflective, and quietly devastating, this memoir is a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the passage of time set against the timeless allure of Paris.

[Book Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

First loves only happen once a lifetime, and as such are memorable, for better or worse. In that vein, what could be a more memorable, or magical, experience than finding that love in Paris, a city well known for its romance? For Julie, a 20-year-old music student from a small town in Main, that’s exactly what happened. Furthering her musical talents, and trying to broaden her horizons in a city full of culture, Julie meets Luc, an older man who shares her passionate love of music and art. As the story so often goes, from that moment on, her life was never the same.

Paris Blue is a superbly written memoir by Julie Scolnik about finding unexpected and intense love, in a foreign country. I loved the descriptions of Paris and how the city became such a part of Julie’s story, creating the sense that the love she shared with Luc was literally impossible anywhere else. Scolnik’s wonderful prose perfectly captures the atmosphere and energy of Paris, and the first half of the book reads like a love letter to the city itself. Paris has had more than its fair share of lines written in its honor and this book joins those ranks, painting vivid pictures of bustling streets, quaint cafes, cultured inhabitants, and the serenely bucolic nature that the city still manages to maintain despite all the activity. Julie’s relationship with Luc takes more of a center stage in the latter part of the memoir, as their relationship progresses and then regresses in turns, leaving the reader unsure where the two may eventually land. Throughout the entire impassioned book, Scolnik keeps the tone deeply personal, opening each chapter with an excerpt from one of Luc’s letters, providing hints to events that occur later in their blossoming friendship turned to romance. She never shies away from her feelings or actions, portraying them all as accurately as one can imagine they were at the moment in time.

Music plays a big part in this story. It is music that brings them together in the first place, and the thing that they bond over so intensely, creating an emotional connection well before anything else. The music is so instrumental to their relationship, in fact, that Scolnik provides an index at the end of the pieces that meant the most to them. It’s a sentimental addition that creates another layer of vulnerability to the story being told.

Paris Blue is Julie Scolnik’s memoir, it will captivate readers that love Paris with her vivid descriptions. Readers that enjoy a true story romance will find this biography appealing and heartwarming.

[Graeme Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love by Julie Scolnik is a deeply evocative and emotionally resonant memoir that captures the intoxicating beauty and quiet devastation of first love. Set against the luminous backdrop of 1970s Paris, the narrative immerses readers in a world of music, longing, and youthful discovery, where every glance and gesture carries emotional weight.

Scolnik writes with a graceful sensitivity that mirrors the very essence of memory itself, fluid, reflective, and at times haunting. Her portrayal of a young woman navigating love with a married man is neither romanticized nor judged, but instead explored with honesty and nuance. The emotional arc, stretching across decades, gives the story a profound depth, transforming it from a fleeting romance into a meditation on time, loss, and unresolved longing.

What makes this memoir particularly compelling is its ability to balance the dreamlike allure of Paris with the sobering realities beneath it. The musical setting adds another layer of richness, echoing the rhythms of passion and heartbreak that define the narrative. There is a quiet elegance to the storytelling that lingers long after the final page.

Ultimately, Paris Blue is not just about first love, but about the enduring imprint it leaves on our lives. It is a beautifully written, introspective work that will resonate with anyone who has ever tried to make sense of a love that never fully fades.

[Iris Adler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a deeply moving book that takes the reader into the compelling territory of first love. It is a richly rendered story, told with great honesty and loving detail. Julie succeeds in transporting us unto the drama of her great love adventure as a music student in Paris, while at the same time vividly portraying Paris of the time.

In fact, Paris is as much a character in this book as the protagonists. Through Julie's colorful and exacting writing, we become deeply embedded in young Julie's Paris. We are with her on the streets, in the cafes, in the concert halls.

The story is resonant for all of us who have experienced a passionate first love, as Julie's clear and authentic voice elucidates that special time. It has the drama, the suspense and insights that make for great reading.

I heartily recommend this book. It is a beautifully told story that will transport you to another time and place, a story that will linger long after the book is finished.

[Kellie Rendina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scolnik has created a flowing narrative arc in three parts that takes readers from the author's enchanting time in Paris as she falls in love with Luc against a backdrop of music and French culture, to her return to the states and subsequent disillusionment and, finally, to a place where she can fully appreciate the past—even its unanswered questions—for both its beauty and its sadness. Moreover, the vulnerability Scolnik exhibits in expressing her first feelings of love and tenderness, followed by an enduring sense of frustration and grief at the abrupt loss of first love, is to be commended. These themes and feelings she explores are certainly universal, transcending demographics like age and gender, but the memoir imbues them with perspective born of distance and encourages readers to seek the deeper meaning in how they shape us.

[George Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paris Blue is as rich, honest and emotional as Julie Scolnik's music! I delighted in her younger and older selves, the older woman present in the younger by being able to finally walk away, and the younger still in the older, happily hopeful and loving and intelligent!! It takes courage to write so honestly and I feel so happy that Julie Scolnik has shared her experience with the world.

Often in intimate biographies there are moments when I feel the author is not being sincere or is unable to express themselves well. I didn't feel this once in Julie Scolnik's writing. I read her words with delight, with ease, and curiosity, right to the last page. Her beauty, her inner beauty, shine from her writing exactly as they do from her music. I feel awed, honestly, awed that she shares herself like this. Thank-you, thank-you, Julie Scolnik, as sincerely as those words can convey.

[David Olson]

A book that many of us can relate to, Paris Blue describes in achingly accurate detail the passions of first love and the lasting impact it can have on our lives. Set against the colorful background of Paris in the 1970s and magnified by the author's wide-ranging academic knowledge and musical career, the story is far more rich than most. It is also intensely personal. Much like Martin Goldsmith's marvelous The Inextinguishable Symphony, Paris Blue interweaves two of the most fundamental forces in our lives, love and music, but it does so in the first-person and with a more intense focus on love. I laughed, I cried, and I read most of it in one day because I couldn't put it down. Ms. Scolnik, the virtuoso flutist, is now the virtuoso author, baring her heart and touching ours, in words as well as she does in music.

[A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahhhh… to be young & in love! And in Paris! This is an engaging, well-written, refreshingly honest, coming-of-age memoir. We escape to Paris with the younger version of the American author on her year abroad (1976) to study music. The author writes of the pleasure of just being in Paris while taking metros, spending afternoons in cafés and attending her choir practices. She falls in love and tries to grapple with her emotions and the nature of her liaison with a married, older man. It is easy to empathize with her when the relationship sours in the latter half of the book, set mostly in the US.
Thank you to the author and publisher for a complimentary (signed!) copy of this book; my review is an honest one.

[Johanna Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

You won't mind staying home during the pandemic to read Paris Blue! This book takes you back in time and plops you down smack dab in 1970s Paris, filling your senses with the din of its bustling streets and cafes, concerts and the thrilling feeling of first falling deeply in love. It is a delightful memoir of a talented musician centered around her junior year abroad and the continuing impact of her Parisian experiences after she returned to Wesleyan and then eventually in Boston. Scolnik captures the settings, develops the characters and moves the story along at the right pace. I am still a little surprised that this is a memoir as the story unfolds so beautifully.

[Elizabeth Cottrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an exquisitely poignant and vividly rendered memoir of the author’s experience in 1976 as a 20-year-old music student in Paris! She was young, exuberant, and deeply committed to her craft as a flutist and her deep and rich appreciation for music in all forms. When she caught a glimpse of Luc, a handsome French attorney bass player in the chorus of Orchestre de Paris, it leads to an intense, passionate affair that is fueled by their shared love of music and the incredibly romantic backdrop of Paris in the 1970s. His marriage, presumably on the rocks, is an obstacle the author was sure would be overcome by time and true love. But the scars and heartache from their eventual breakup haunted her for years, even in her very happy marriage to a man who must be very devoted not to be threatened by her need to see Luc again and come to some closure from the lingering grief.

Anyone who has ever experienced the intoxication of a youthful and passionate love will relive it in the author’s incredibly beautiful writing. Her words will immerse you in the magic of one of the world’s most stunning cities—its sights, sounds, smells, and tastes. She writes with mature self-awareness, vulnerability, and honesty about her various choices. If you’re ready to be swept away in a captivating story, you’ll love Paris Blue.

[Sharon Sorokin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Julie Scolnik's Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love is a romantic, lyrical story of a passion for music entwined with 20 year old Julie's passion for an older married man, set against the backdrop of a junior year abroad and a period of time afterwards. Long after the relationship is over, it reverberates, like distant sound waves. The book is beautifully structured, like a three movement piece of music, with repeating themes and rhythmic patterns (letters from Luc, scenes of love, conflict, confusion, and recalled melody) which resolve (I won't spoil it by saying how) at the memoir's conclusion. However, I don't think one needs to understand musical structure to appreciate Paris Blue.

I read Paris Blue over the course of two very relaxing and pleasant afternoons. It was a delightful way to spend my afternoons.

I will be very interested to see what Julie writes next.

[Becky Halston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today at our Book & Brunch, we had the joy of reading Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love by Julie Scolnik, and I’m still thinking about it! Julie’s story of love, heartbreak, and self-discovery in 1970s Paris pulled me in from the very first page.

I felt like I was walking those Paris streets with her, hearing the music, and experiencing the highs and lows of first love alongside her. It’s the kind of memoir that makes you reflect on your own past loves while appreciating the beauty of the journey.

This one stayed with me long after our discussion, definitely a book I’ll be thinking about for a while.

[Judi Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hey everyone! Today at Book & Brunch, we dug into Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love by Julie Scolnik, and I’ve got to say, it really got to me. Julie’s story of young love, heartbreak, and finding yourself in 1970s Paris is just incredible.

I could practically see the streets, hear the music, and feel all the little moments that made her journey so real. Talking about it with all of you in the club made it even better. I found myself laughing, sighing, and remembering my own first love along the way.

If you haven’t read it yet, do yourself a favor. It’s the kind of memoir that sticks with you.

[Christine M in Texas (stamperlady50) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paris Blue: A Memoir of First Love
By: Julie Scolnik
5💙💙💙💙💙

What happens in Paris, does not always stay in Paris.

Paris, 1976-Young love as twenty-one-year old Julie is in Paris for a period of time as a flutist and student while looking for more to her time in Paris.

She meets Luc, a Frenchman at one of the orchestras they play in. Julie gives us a peak into her life as she met and fell in love with Luc.

While in Paris she teaching him English and their attraction is mutual. Their time in Paris results in several months of a relationship. As she prepares to head back to the states to finish her last year of college, they write letters with the hope of continuing their relationship.

This novel is frank and full of love, challenges and heartbreak as she spends the next twenty five years finding closure.

[Debbie Rozier · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this memoir, Julie shares the story of her first love which she met while she was studying abroad in Paris in 1977.

The memoir also has letters that were written by Julie’s love, Luc, once she went back home.
I liked the way that those letters help tell Julie’s story.

The memoir is written in three parts. Part One is when Julie is in Paris and meets Luc. Part Two is after Julie moves back to the US and the relationship continues long distance with a few transatlantic visits. Part Three is Julie and Luc as they see each other sporadically over the years.

I enjoy memoirs about real people giving a glimpse into some part of their life so this was a quick read for me.

[Avery Sadler · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Sou Stirring Memoir That Stayed With Me

I discovered Paris Blue through Book and Brunch, and I’m so glad I did. Julie Scolnik’s story touched me deeply it’s a beautifully written, emotional memoir about first love, heartbreak, and the echoes of memory that never fade.

The way she describes Paris the cafés, the concert halls, the feeling of being young and full of hope completely transported me. Her honesty and vulnerability make this book unforgettable.

A must read for anyone who believes that some loves stay with us forever.

Raymond, Book and Brunch Member

[Danette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well. There was a point in reading this when I thought that it was going to be soft erotica written by a middle aged woman about her 20-year old self. I was very wrong. I got past that point and then couldn't put it down.

It is a well-written memoir about young love, first love, poetry and music. I do love closure and can relate to her search for that in relation to this tormented relationship.

Recommend.

[Catherine Elhadad · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book during one long afternoon. Julie Scolnik's story really resonated with mine. I am French, I left Paris for New York at age 22 and I have 4 daughters. The art of the writer recalling her youth in Paris made me remember how amazed I felt arriving in New York. And how happy I had felt in experiencing this new culture.

And of course, the music always present along the book, adds another layer to the richness of the story.

[Jordan Rich · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Paris Blue" is a well-crafted memoir with romantic Paris as the backdrop. The author takes us on an emotional ride that is at times exciting, at other moments heartbreaking. The city comes alive with Parisian cafes, flowing wine, the world's greatest music and more. And the complexity of Julie's romantic encounter, with its many surprises, will keep you up past your bedtime. A terrific tale!

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the first paragraph I was captivated by the story, style and prose. Scolnik took me back to my days studying in Paris -but with her own unique and intimate celebration of music and love. We delight as we share her free spirit, her first love relationship, her heartache. And ultimately, we cheer her on, every step of the way.

[Lidia Rosenbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting! The author recalls with painful veracity her vulnerable naïveté as a young musician with senses tautly attuned to the romantic music of Paris, evoking the sublime without glossing over the grittiness. Read it in a long afternoon!

[Paul Z. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paris Blue is a charming and beautifully written memoir. Anyone who loves Paris will be drawn in to the city Scolnik remembers so vividly. And if you came to love it as a young person you will be enchanted by the story of her first love in the City of Light. She tells it with touching detail and honesty --the exhilaration, confusion, heartache and recurrently-dashed hopes, and then her reflections and resolution of a formative affair. It seems to have taken her decades to write this story, but it was well worth the wait.

[Mercy]

A beautifully haunting memoir that captures the bittersweet ache of first love. Julie Scolnik paints 1970s Paris with emotional depth, music, and longing. “Paris Blue” lingers like a familiar melody, poignant, nostalgic, unforgettable.