Expatriate Paris: A Cultural and Literary Guide to Paris of the 1920's

by Arlen J. Hansen

Offers anecdotes, gossip, facts, and creativity to places in Paris in the 20s that were lived in, visited by, or seen, by various figures, literary and otherwise

Genres: History, France

320 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1990

Reviews

[Theo Logos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Expatriate Paris is breezy and easy, an unabashed, gossipy book. No deep dive into the literary and artistic world of 1920s Paris, this book is content with dropping names and telling a few tales.

It has a unique structure. Rather than being arranged around chronology, or personalities, or art movements, Expatriate Paris is built around addresses. It is arranged as a walking tour of Paris, grouping significant addresses related to the Expatriate culture of the ‘20s within easy walking distance. After giving an address (and sometimes noting that the building is no longer there) the book tells what names and activities were associated with that particular address. Occasionally it tells a brief story of what went down there. Want to know where the hotel where Hemingway’s early manuscripts were lost is? It’s in here. Have a hankering to visit the wall where E.E. Cummings was arrested for public urination? You can find it here.

If you are looking for a serious book about Expatriate life in 1920s Paris, read Hemingway’s A Movable Feast, or Shakespeare and Company by Sylvia Beach, or Cowley’s Exile’s Return. But if you want a quick, light overview, or, if you are in Paris and want to know where to walk in the Lost Generation’s footsteps, this is the book for you.

[Chris Linehan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this anecdotal history of Paris. I do wish though I had read it with a map handy. There were a few places from our recent Parisian trip, but my mind doesn’t quite work in a way that lays out places before me like a map. Even places like Upland, where I lived for ages and is significantly smaller than Paris does not exist map like in my mind. Instead, like Paris it evokes a sentimental, compartmentalized history. The only difference is that Paris evokes from its bursting impact on me, whereas Upland pressed into me gently for over a decade. More than one way to skin a cat and all…

Good quick read for anyone interested in the early 20th century Parisian life, or to someone, like me, attempting to recreate that epoch internally: then, it stands as a perfect reference guide to Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris. It’s kinda like reading the footnotes of a Wikipedia page, not exactly scholarly, but c’est la vie- I consider myself a continuation of 20th century experimentation anyway. Ah! Paris, you have gone to my head again!

[Roberta Westwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

10 stars

On a 1-5 rating scale, I give this book a 10. This book should have been subtitled: Who Lived Where in the 20’s in Paris, This was so incredibly well researched, down to street addresses, not only who lived there, but who they were hanging out with, who stayed overnight, who resided in the tenant’s absence, who moved their later… and who lived across the street. For hotels, all the significant guests are listed, along with when they were there, for what reason, where else they have stayed in Paris. All this is laid out as if on a walking tour, down one street, covering one arrondissement at a time. Artists, authors, and creatives of all sorts are included. And, of course, Gertrude Stein knew everyone, so her presence is woven throughout.

I’m not going to do a review with a listening guide on this one, it would be too laborious, but if you are interested in the details, do as I did, and buy the Kindle version too. This is normally where I complain about the lack of a PDF accompaniment (Audible, are you listening?), but I am honestly too excited about this content to care. That, and the fact that it was my lucky day: I found the Kindle on sale for $1.99! The maps and detailed index of people mentioned (yes, a real index!), make it possible to find quotes you wanted to write down while listening (I had a bunch of those).

The first thing I looked for after listening was to see if the author, Arlen Hansen, had written a similar book on the 30’s… but sadly not. Who knows, maybe he’s working on it now?

[Eileen]

Did not finish. Long list of Paris streets and addresses with cultural and literary snippets from the 1920's. Interesting but too tedious to sit down and read cover-to-cover. Could be a fun reference to have when traveling around Paris as a tourist, expat, or tour guide.

[Patricia S · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book talks about many of the famous people who lived in Paris during the 1920’s, famous streets, restaurants, etc. I found it enjoyable because I learned many things about these writers and artists whom we’ve all heard of.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read!

[Garconniere · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read, so happy I found this at Shakespeare and Co. for 3 euros! Made wandering around the city even more delightful.

[Jacqueline Hurwitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting history. Easy to read. Some fun tidbits. If one likes the cultural history of Paris it is a great adjunct read.