The Crazy Years: Paris in the Twenties

by William Wiser

Wiser tells the story of that madcap period when writers and painters, musicians and dancers, the new and the old rich, the exiles from Communist Russia and Prohibition America all converged at a unique moment in history upon an exciting and irreverent city. 74 illustrations.

Genres: History, France, Nonfiction, Paris, Biography

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 26, 1983

Reviews

[Erik Graff · Rating 4 out of 5]

In no wise definitive, this is an engagingly entertaining portrayal of the artistic end of the mostly American diaspora in Paris during the 1920s. Anecdotal, often sketchy, it provides a nostalgic look back to a subculture affectionately portrayed by the author. Students of early 20th century arts in the West, of dance, music, art or literature, will find many familiar portraits within.

[Dvora Treisman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book and I thank my friend on Goodreads (don't remember who it was, but someone had it on their list) from whom I learned of its existence.

Wiser talks about many of the writers, artists, entertainers, rich party-goers who lived in Paris in the 1920s. One review I read said it was just a long list of name-dropping, but I didn't find that to be true. There were so many people discussed that I sometimes got confused and didn't keep all the relationships straight. On the other hand, I've read several other books about many of these same people, so it was good to read about them in a slightly different light. Mostly, this is a book of short vignettes, bringing these very interesting people to life. One example is of an entertainer I had never heard of:
"Barbette was the sensation of several theatrical seasons at the Alhambra and the Casino de Paris: the transvestite performer from Round Rock, Texas, whose real name was Vander Clyde, did a graceful tightrope act as a lovely nymph in tights and ostrich feathers."

The engaging vignettes are accompanied with many, many photos. I highly recommend this book to anyone even vaguely interested in this topic. Hey, Paris in the 20s, what's not to like?

[David Edelberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a totally wonderful picture of Paris in the twenties. I first learned of it in Jacques Barzun's immense history "From Dawn to Decadence." He referred to it as the best survey of the times though he hated the title.
I found a used copy online for a couple of dollars and read it all in a weekend. It is wonderful! The follow-up, about Paris in the 1930's is quite good but since it ends with Nazi tanks rolling into Paris is undeniably a downer.
Wiser's novels (utterly unknown to me) have been a real treat. "Disappearances" is about the French serial killer Landru and the novel itself is much like "Devil in White City" except all the architecture stuff is replaced by conversations with Gertrude Stein and Alica B. Toklas

[Brian Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

In THE CRAZY YEARS, William Wiser does an amazing job creating order out of the fantastically tangled web of geniuses and eccentrics who made Paris the center of the universe in the 1920s. His plot management is awe inspiring, really. For any lover of the fine arts, TCY is crucial for understanding the milieu in which so many iconic works of art were created. It is essential for the reader to be well-steeped in the art, music, and literature of the period. This one is a winner.

[Susan Arra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting.

[David Lai · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very readable, enjoyable skip through the cultural ferment of 20s Paris, with lots of title-tattle about the lives of celebrities. Strong American bias. Great photos.

[Rusty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wiser received much acclaim for his book, Disappearances, just after WWI. This is another about France - particularly Paris and its people from the natives to those who chose this beautiful city in which to make their mark! From Chagall to Hemingway, from Gertrude Stein to Miro, from Stravinsky to Chanel, it gives glimpses into the lives of so many of the famous before they became famous. As Europe struggles with war, invasion, and occupation the new residents celebrate, learn and develop their crafts or just hang about among the famous.

The author documents the invasion of Paris by the wealthy and talented, many of whom are Americans but artisans form Russia, Spain, Ireland, and other countries move among them. Whether flush with money or struggling to stay afloat, many go from party to party. Liquor flows freely and the Americans spend, spend, spend. Eventually, the French become fed up with it all but Lindbergh redeems the American image when he arrives and the crash of 1929 changes it all. This is a light read but rather interesting with its tales of the relationships that flowered and waned among those who lived in Paris during this decade.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book covers a decade of life in Paris from 1920 to 1930. It principally covers the life of the expatriates arts communities in the city from authors, dance, painting and the cafe scene they all haunted. The majority of people discussed are mostly Americans who had money to burn in Paris in the 20s, though the Russians in exile also get discussed. One thing though that I suspect many readers unfamiliar with either the artists or writers of this period might have problems with is the "name dropping" where there's some assumption that the reader already knows something of people being discussed ans short biographies at the back of the book probably would have helped in this regard.

What's also missing is any look at the native Parisian artists and their interaction (if any) with the expatriate communities. Aside from this obvious missing link in community life this book is a great primer to the crazy, decadent and explosively creative period that was Paris in the 1920s.

[lisa_emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading this book, I realized how many memoirs, biographies, and novels I had read covering Paris of this period. Wiser's book did not really reveal much that I had already did not know, but there were a few stories regarding Coco Chanel, Diaghilev, and other Russian expaptriates that I knew very little about. And in being quite broad, covering culture-makers as diverse as writers, dancers, musicians, fashionists, etc., the book lacked depth. I also did not like how Wiser failed to include proper footnotes; this made it difficult to differentiate stories that were heresy-anecdotes derived from other memoirs or actual events.

Perhaps this is not the best book for those who want to dig deep into the cultural history of Paris of the '20s, but it is alright for someone with a passing interest.

[Henrique Cassol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um livro bem interessante para se ler descontraidamente. O livre reúne vários artistas da época de ouro de Paris, durante os anos 20, como Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró, Gertrude Stein, John dos Passos, James Joyce, Coco Chanel, Ernest Hemingway, Igor Stravinski, Josephine Baker, o Casal Fritzgerald, dentre muitos outros.
Semelhante ao trabalho de Woody Allen com o filme "Meia noite em Paris" o livro traz uma compilação da história dos renomados artistas da década, sem se ater a biografia de nenhum artista em particular. Refere-se à biografia de uma década (anos 20) e às loucuras e excentricidades de uma sociedade em polvorosa, onde o meio artístico brotava em cada esquina do bairro Montparnasse, produzindo em curto espaço de tempo, talvez, os melhores artistas do século passado.
Excelente história!

[Mark Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

As Obelix might have said, "These Parisians are Crazy!" toc, toc, toc... And he should know, having been to Lutetia back in the day.

But wait, the people in this book are mostly Americans! Crazy ones. Like Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zany Zelda... a cornucopia of the bright, the bold and the bipolar.

Lots of great anecdotes of the Lost Generation Literati and others in a very readable form. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

[H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful, book with some fine writing. The stories blend together, as a stream not just by the art they cover but also by subject matter. It only offers the softest of brush strokes as it covers the decade in Paris, paying each artist a nod without fully going into his or her life.

The only true complaint is in Wiser's need to pretentiously spice the novel with French words, but even this can be given a pass when viewed upon the subject matter and city the book tells the story of.

[LOL_BOOKS]

ASIDE FROM THE SISTERS, DO YOU HAVE RECS THAT ARE SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE BRIGHT YOUNG THINGS? DOES AMONG THE BOHEMIANS COVER IT TOO?

THE CRAZY YEARS BY WILLIAM WOSER LOOKS AT THE PARIS SCENE, BOBBED HAIR AND BATHTUB GIN AT THE LOMERICANS, AND BRIGHT YOUNG PEOPLE BY D J TAYLOR THE BRITISH. SIEGFRIED SASSOON SPENT THE TWENTIES BANGING STEPHEN TENNANT, THE BRIGHTEST OF THE LONDON CAMP BRIGHT YOUNG THINGS, AND A RECENT BIOGRAPHY ON SASSOON GIVES SOME INTERESTING DETAILS ABOUT THE SCENE.

[Garnett · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a moderately long, meandering stream of famous names and their addresses in Paris of the 1920s. This book has many details and interesting anecdotes, but never seems to find a binding theme. I've already forgotten much of the content. Even so, I learned a few things. No book can be faulted for that.

[Lynne Seastone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some funny stories about artists and writers . Written in a disjointed style that became tiresome and I would just about give up when another name dropped would spark an interest. Will certainly refer to the epilogue for addresses and locations of the haunts and homes of the subject personages whenever I visit Paris!

[Antonio Filipe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfeito estudo de Wiser sobre a cultura artística traçada em Paris durantes os loucos anos 1920. O autor nos leva a Paris de 90 anos atrás, fazendo-nos mergulhar naquela atmosfera nostálgica que só ele conseguiu criar, fazendo-nos encontrar com grandes nomes como Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Joyce, Fitzgerald e tantos outros que influenciaram artes, música e literatura no século passado.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

SCOTT & ZELDA, CALL ME IMMEDIATELY. This book will make you long to be a seductive expatriate lesbian who's friends with all the latest Spanish sculptors and insane Russian composers and throws intellectual salons in Paris and you won't be content with your own parties ever again.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wild ride through the Dadaists and other obscure cults who defined Parisian culture

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book about the literary/artistic community in 1920s Paris. Almost everybody who was anybody was there then and in the 1930s...Hemingway, Fitzgerald, James Baldwin, Picasso, Dali etc.etc.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you're interested in this time period I think there are several books worth reading before this one. I found the short stories to read like choppy magazine articles. Tedious to get through.

[Tammy]

944.361 WIS

[Tasha]

Not really what I was wanting or expecting. Did like the pictures, though.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun and light read.

[Rene Carlos · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun book. Do not expect a deep history. It is however a nice overview, filled with great pictures and delightful stories.