Book review: Christmas Confessions & Cocktails

It's that time of the year again... I like Christmas but I'm not the over-the-top type who has been counting weeks since August (you know who you are!). Although that's when I received this review request from Vicky Lesage, the author of "Christmas confessions & cocktails", asking me if I wanted to read it. Of course I instantly accepted because, as you might know, I'm a big fan of her books (you can find other reviews here, here and here).

Reading Christmas stories in August was too much for me, but November seemed the right time. And look, since I'm writing this review now, it might give you an idea for a Christmas present.

So what is it all about? Well, in this book, Vicky, an American expat living in France with her French husband and their two kids, recalls 25 of her Christmas experiences, either in St Louis where she's from or in France. It is written in her usual informal cheery but honest tone. Yes, she's telling it like it is: The good (family reunions and bizarre kris-kindle traditions...), the bad (a poignant and heart-breaking story about her grandfather) and the plain ugly (puke fest on a plane to only name one!).

The bonus of this book has to be cocktail recipes she sneaked in after each story. A lot of great ideas for Christmas (or any time of the year) drinks...

I really enjoyed this book. It's an easy read and really sets you in a good mood, especially ahead of the Holiday season. It's a bit like a taking a trip down memory lane with your best friend, sipping cocktails! You will definitely laugh, sympathise and relate to Vicky's experiences.

So, if you want to make a nice present, or you just want a good read ahead of Christmas, you can grab a copy right here 

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Book review: Petites confessions, "A humorous memoirette"

I think at this stage you have realised I'm addicted to Vicky Lesage's books. And you'd be right. 

For those of you who have landed on this page by mistake and wonder what it's all about, I've already reviewed Vicky's books here and here. 

The Petites confessions is a collection of blog posts and articles Vicky wrote along the way and depicts her experience as an American girl in Paris. The tone is very humorous and as usual she is very honest. Sometimes a bit too much when she confesses how much she has drank or how she accidentally may have eaten someone else's finger (yep, true!). 

With only 60 pages, this book is a bit like an appetiser. You would like to read Confessions of a Paris Party girl or Confessions of a Paris Potty trainer but you're not sure if you'll enjoy Vicky's style or even her stories? Like me, you are allergic to Paris and you need some insight to finally appreciate what the city of lights has to offer ? Maybe you are thinking of moving to Paris and you don't know if it's a good idea... Or maybe you just need a good laugh.

The goods news is the book is only 0.99£, so whatever your reasons are, you should give it a try!

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Book review - That's Paris: An anthology of life, love and sarcasm in the city of light

As you might know, I'm not a big fan of Paris. Breton people usually have that sort of love-hate relationship with the capital. We all agree it's a beautiful city to visit, with wonderful sites, museums, churches and landscapes, but we would never live there (unless absolutely necessary of course). It's too big, crowded, polluted and Parisians (except my good friend Laetitia) are not the most welcoming bunch if I'm honest. 

So, how come I have almost fallen in love with Paris? I started to read Vicki's blog a year ago, an American girl who has lived in Paris for the past ten years and the way she talked about her experience just appealed to me. She kept it real with a touch of humour and you could really see she was embracing the French way of life (especially the wine drinking, but who wouldn't really?!).

I read her first two books, Confessions of a Paris party girl and Confessions of a Paris potty trainer, that I reviewed right here. To be honest, it was so entertaining I couldn't put the Kindle down and read both books in a matter of days. 

This time, Vicky is back with a vengeance, and the help of 23 authors. With her fellow editor, Adria J.Cimino, they put together an anthology about Paris. It's a mix of fiction, non-fiction and humorous pieces that take you right in the heart of the City of Lights. All written by francophiles, foreigners who fell in love with Paris or even French authors, the book covers a multitude of subjects, sometimes serious like love and loss, sometimes funny like the infamous French administration or the maze that a French supermarket can be. Some stories just take you to another world altogether, from mysterious encounters on a bridge or in a cemetery, to an improbable Zombie apocalypse...  An interesting feature of this book is that 4 pieces are offered both in English and French. As a bilingual person but the worst translator in the world, I can safely say the stories were equally interesting and engaging in both languages (well done to the translators!).

It would be hard to review each piece, but there are definitely all kind of stories and styles to suit everyone's taste. For some reason, I have been drawn to bitter sweet tales like "A scoop of Henry" by Cheryl McAlister, where the main character spreads her late husband's ashes across the city. An other stand out for me was "Violette", by Frederique Veysset, the story of a couple who inherit their neighbour's apartment and find a "hidden treasure" behind a condemned door... The prize for the funniest piece would have to go to "La dame de la nuit" by Leslie Floyd, where an unfortunate American student is being mistaken for someone that she's not (hint: translate the title in English and you will understand!). I also have a special mention for the two mesmerising stories by Didier Quemener (this guy must have Breton blood with a name like that...) "Half Past midnight" and "Le chemin du Dragon". 

In the end, another great book, full of different aspects of life in the City of Light. I'm almost making peace with the French Capital... Who would have known!

On a side note, I really really wonder where Vicki finds the time and the energy to be married, have two kids, work full time, write two books and publish a third one through her own publishing house that she set up a few months ago... And I'm complaining that I can't find proper quality time to write... Considering she also is an avid fan of zombies, I have come to the conclusion that she must be a vampire. How else could it be? She obviously doesn't sleep at all to be able to do everything. That's the only explanation. 

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of the book from Vicki in exchange for an honest review. All the opinions are my own.

 

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Book review: Dutched Up! Rocking the clogs, Expat style

My only experience of the Netherlands consists of a two days training in Amsterdam. I stayed in a hotel near the airport, went out in the town for a meal and that was pretty much it. During that intense experience I noticed that the "bike" culture wasn't a myth. While walking towards the restaurant, I saw a multi-storey car park FULL of bikes, literally thousand of them. How are you supposed to find your own in this mess? 

I would have also liked to try one of the famous coffee-shops, but being with my boss, I didn't think it was a great idea. We eventually ate in an Italian restaurant, went back to the hotel and that was it. The following day I went back home. The stay was so short I feel I didn't have time to experience anything really "Dutch". And despite all my efforts in bribing my superiors, they never sent me back there for more training.

For the past year or so, I've been reading Amanda's blog, a British mum of 3 boys, who has lived in The Netherlands with her Dutch husband for the past 14 years. She was recently a featured author in the anthology "Dutched Up! Rocking the clogs, Expat style". As you might know, memoirs are my favourite type of books, so I had to give that one a go. Who knows, I might go back there at some stage.

The book is a collection of stories from women expats who live in the Netherlands, and it's divided into topics: Culture shock, language learning, food, working, marrying someone Dutch, pregnancy and birth, and so on...

Even though my own experience of the Netherlands is very limited, I took a lot of pleasure reading about anecdotes and stories about foreigners trying to settle in a new country. I learned a lot about Dutch culture, from "open to view" houses (they apparently don't put curtains on their windows over there), to drug-free births. It seems the Dutch are a very direct, no bullshit kind of people (that would probably disturb the Irish a bit as they usually don't mean what they say and don't say what they mean).

There's one thing Irish and Dutch have in common though: Doctors who don't prescribe medicine or antibiotics unless you are dying in front of them. Usually bread and rest solve everything in the Netherlands. I've experienced exactly the same here... quite frustrating sometimes.

I think the hardest thing when you move to another country is learning the language and re-building a whole new social network. The authors explain those barriers very well and how they overcame them. This is what made the book really interesting. Real people, real experiences.

This book is definitely a must have for anyone who, like me, loves reading about other expats stories, and also for people who want to move to the Netherlands and would like to know more about what it's really like living over there.

 

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An american girl in Paris

Since I got my Kindle, I have read in a month what I would normally read in a year! Very good investment if you ask me.

I've been following Vicky's blog for a long time, found by chance when I was looking for inspiration to start my own. So of course, I had to read her books (yes, because she already wrote two!)

Vicky is an American thirty-something from St Louis (In Missouri, not in Louisiana like half of Parisian guys seem to think!), who has lived in Paris for the last 10 years. Within this time she managed to find a job, a husband, have 2 kids, write 2 books, drink a lot more wine than necessary, stuff her face with too many croissants and survive, with difficulty sometimes, the very frustrating French administration.

In her first book "Confessions of a Paris party girl", she recounts the early years, up until she gets married. The title says it all.  She really is confessing all her antics in the French capital. She finds some drinking buddies, one of whom is an Irish girl (of course!) who teaches her some Irish phrases amongst other things. The part where she doesn't understands what "taking the piss" means made me laugh, because I really thought it was a universal saying, not specifically Irish. She's not ashamed of telling it as it is, from the drinking sessions to the hangovers and strange encounters. And there is A LOT of drinking. I wonder how her liver has survived. I'm not going to tell too much but in the end, of course, she meets a really nice Parisian guy (Yes, it does exist, I wouldn't have thought so). The way she describes Paris and the French way of life is very positive (except the Government workers but I'll have to agree with her on this one!), and the weird thing is that it nearly made me like the city. I'm not from Paris you see, very far from it actually, and we have this habit in Brittany to always criticize the Parisians and the Capital in general. This book almost makes me want to go back there for a visit...

The sequel, "Confessions of a Paris Potty trainer", tells her experience as an American mother in Paris. I related a lot more to that book, probably because I have kids myself. She goes through the doctors and midwives appointments where clearly she can't be ashamed of her body, as she has to lay down naked more than once on the examination table. That's something that struck with me. No, not all French women are comfortable with showing all their bits to a stranger! I still have nightmares of my first appointment with the gynaecologist when I was 18 and I had to bare it all. One thing I loved about being pregnant in Ireland is that here, they really respect patients privacy, always ask if you're OK, and explain what they're going to do. From Vicky's experience and my friends in France, I feel that French doctors don't treat pregnant women with the same respect for privacy. 

She had a hard time with both her pregnancies and had a very emotional account of how she gave birth prematurely to a first son (35 weeks), who had to stay in the premature unit for 11 days. Going through pre-term labour on her second pregnancy as well, she was put on bed rest at 25 weeks (and that's where she obviously found the time to finish her book!). Again, she is very honest in her experiences but somehow always manages to stay positive and see the funny side of every situation.

There is a lot more to say about both books but I'm not going to give too much away. It's a very easy read (I devoured them in less than a week), funny, witty, honest and I'd recommend them to anyone who is interested in what Paris life is really like. 

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My thoughts on "French Leave" by Liz Ryan

 

source: Facebook

I finally finished Liz Ryan's memoir "French Leave" and I have to say, it was hard to put the book (well, the Kindle) down every night as I always wanted to know what was going to happen!

Liz is just my opposite. She left Ireland around the same time I arrived here. She quit her job, sold her house and happily gave up her daily commute and crazy urban life to settle in the middle of nowhere in Normandy. I left everything in France (which wasn't much to be honest- that's where we differ), and especially my rural life, to build a new life in the city (which thank God, was on the seaside, or I wouldn't have survived).

As I was reading about her daily struggles and how she described her new surroundings, how she discovered the culture, the mentality and the French lifestyle in general, I found myself laughing, smiling and nodding. A lot.

As a French person living in Ireland, I empathized and understood both sides of the fence: The French crazy bureaucracy, the love of wine, the strikes that sometimes paralyse the country, the social etiquette that seems so normal for us French, but can be daunting for foreigners. On the other side, I knew what she was talking about when there were mentions of RTE, Joe Duffy, Galtee sausages or just the description of a country who had gone crazy during the Celtic tiger.

She even talked about Thierry Henry's infamous handball and we ended up in complete opposite situations the following days... Everybody in France apologising to her, all my Irish colleagues slagging me off...

I liked the way she described French TV, politicians, current affairs (riots, strike, protests and so on). I followed all of those events from my couch in Ireland, she was living them, and her accounts were very accurate. 

I found her very honest as well. She talks about France in a very positive way, yet she doesn't romanticise the country. Yes, France is a great place to live, the quality of life is second to none, but if you decide to live there, it's not going to be easy. You'll have to learn the language, make an effort, socialise and basically integrate into French society to be accepted.

Towards the end of the book, she wonders if it's time to go home or if she wants to stay. After all, 10 years is a long time and sometimes homesickness comes knocking at the door... She is actually asking the reader what he would do if he was in the same situation.

"Suddenly, I'm standing at a crossroads, with no maps and no compass. In an ideal world, there'd be some way to keep a foot in both camps, but I can't see how...or that would just be "chicken" anyway, and a shortcut to schizophrenia?"

"What would you do, if you were me?"

I've asked myself the same question. A thousand times. The difference is, I'm married, I have kids and our life is here now. Yet, I still keep the idea at the back of my mind. I can't see myself getting old in Ireland. I'm not really French anymore, but I'm not entirely Irish either. 

And to finish, a quote that I completely agree with:

"France does sensational fireworks, but Ireland does verbal pyrotechnics."

I really enjoyed the book and recommend it to anyone who wants to have an honest insight about life in France. It's funny, witty, there's action (mainly with the Police), drink, shopping, not that much romance, but hey, you can't have everything!!

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