Synopsis:
"The first in a three-part memoir exposing the darker side of French culture, a brilliantly funny and poignant study of French life that begins when a young graduate makes a spontaneous decision to fol-low the man she loves to Paris.
He is, however, nowhere to be found . . . now a penniless singleton she must work in order to survive. With only a smattering of French she begins a new life. A Stranger in Paris follows Karen in her formative years as she searches for friends, family, and love. A portrayal of French life ‘from the inside’ by a narrator who has seen the various echelons of French society from rich to poor, from the capital city to the rural South West".
My Review:
"The first in a three-part memoir exposing the darker side of French culture, a brilliantly funny and poignant study of French life that begins when a young graduate makes a spontaneous decision to fol-low the man she loves to Paris.
He is, however, nowhere to be found . . . now a penniless singleton she must work in order to survive. With only a smattering of French she begins a new life. A Stranger in Paris follows Karen in her formative years as she searches for friends, family, and love. A portrayal of French life ‘from the inside’ by a narrator who has seen the various echelons of French society from rich to poor, from the capital city to the rural South West".
My Review:
I am always a bit nervous when reading and rating memoir’s because it’s so personal for the author. In this case I didn’t have a problem as from the very start I knew I’d like this book.
The beginning is very descriptive and realistic of what university life can sometimes feel like.
It was a very good introduction to the story and set the scene exceptionally well!
And then BAM, what an adventure. It takes real guts to leave everything you know and live in a foreign city, for whatever reason! I admire the determination and independence.
The descriptions of the first days of her adventure in the Blanchard household is captivating. The adjustment to fit into her new role and what was expected of her! The lessons she had to learn quite quickly and the obvious language barrier were very interesting to read! It then led her to a different type of adventure. I don’t want to say too much because I don’t want to spoil it for you!
The writing style is very easy to follow and has good strains of humour in it! I felt that her very real feelings and emotions were written very well! I learnt a lot about the french culture and language!
I struggled to put this down (read it in one day). If I’m honest, I liked it a lot more than I thought it would!
Thank you Karen for sharing these experiences with us, I loved reading about them! I can’t wait for the next one...
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