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French Women Don't Get Fat~How do French women do it?
This is the book that unlocks the simple secrets of the "French paradox" - how to enjoy food and stay slim and healthy……~How do French women do it?
This is the book that unlocks the simple secrets of the "French paradox" - how to enjoy food and stay slim and healthy.
"Mireille Guiliano's book is slender, elegant, well-spoken, sensible and unembarrassed by the frank embrace of stratagems - just like the French woman whom she holds up to the reader to admire and, if we can, to emulate." Adam Gopnik, author of Paris to the Moon.
"Who can resist a book that recommends love and chocolate as part of a balanced diet" Allison Pearson.
"This book is, refreshingly, all about pleasure, not punishment" Elle
"This book's good sense is unanswerable" Sunday Times.
"For the woman in search of a better, sexier, happier lifestyle" Scotsman.~French Women Don%27t Get Fat|B56|~608~674~~

French Women For All Seasons - Mireille Guiliano~"More lifestyle than diet book, and, joy of joys, it does not start by banning caffeine and alcohol. As a guide for life this is entertaining and common sense" Daily Express.~"More lifestyle than diet book, and, joy of joys, it does not start by banning caffeine and alcohol. As a guide for life this is entertaining and common sense" Daily Express.~French Women For All Seasons|P93|~608~1039~~

Teenager en Provence - Annie Le Voguer~Anne's father announces his plans to move to the South of France during her school summer holidays, where she will finish her education in an International College. His relocation dream come true, her worst nightmare.~Just 15, she discovers a new world in Cannes that she learns to love, mixing with teenagers from all over the world. Suddenly the move doesn't seem so bad.
Exams over, she finds herself in a caravan in the middle of a vineyard in the valley of Bargemon in the Var mountains, with only her parents and brother for company. Nothing but two years in a French secretarial college of the nearby town to look forward to, the nightmare had returned.
This amusing travel memoir recounts the ups and downs of family life as they adapt to their new world, building a home out of an old sheep shed. A relocation story with a twist.~Teenager en Provence - Annie Le Voguer|P150|~608~1021~~

A Year in the Merde - Stephen Clarke~"There are lots of French people who are not at all hypocritical, inefficient, treacherous, intolerant, adulterous or incredibly sexy...They just didn't make it into my book."~Paul West, a young Englishman, arrives in Paris to start a new job..and finds out what the French are really like.
They do eat a lot of cheese, some of which smells like pigs' droppings. They don't wash their armpits with garlic soap. Going on strike really is the second national participation sport after pétanque. And, yes, they do use suppositories.
In his first novel, Stephen Clarke gives a laugh-out-loud account of the pleasures and perils of being a Brit in France. Less quaint than A Year in Provence, less chocolatey than Chocolat, A Year in the Merde will tell you how to get served by the grumpiest Parisian waiter; how to make perfect vinaigrette every time; how to make amour - not war; and how not to buy a house in the French countryside.~A Year in the Merde - Stephen Clarke|P37|~608~1023~~

Merde Actually - Stephen Clarke~"Edgier than Bryson, hits harder than Mayle" The Times….~A year after arriving in France, Englishman Paul West is still struggling with some fundamental questions.
What is the best way to scare a gendarme ? Why are there no health warnings of French nudist beaches ? Is it really polite to sleep with your boss's mistress ? And how do you cope with a plague of courgettes ?
Paul opens his English tea room, and mutates (temporarily) into a Parisian waiter; samples the pleasures of typically French hotel-room afternoons; and, on a return visit to the UK, sees the full horror of a British office party through Parisian eyes.
Meanwhile he continues his search for the perfect French mademoiselle. Will Paul find l'amour éternel, or will it all end in merde ?~Merde Actually - Stephen Clarke|P61|~608~1025~~

Talk to the Snail - Stephen Clarke~Making sure you get served in a café...Harassing French Estate Agents...Pronouncing French swear-words…~With useful sections on:

Making sure you get served in a café
Harassing French Estate Agents
Living with Bacteria
Pronouncing French swear-words
Surviving the French driving experience
Falling in amour, Paris-style
And beacoup, beaucoup more !~Talk to the Snail - Stephen Clarke|L78|~608~1027~~

For You There'll be No Crying - Hardback - Peter White~A work related tradgedy prompts Peter and Sue to give up life in England and retire to the tranquility of the French countryside…~For you there'll be no crying is the story of two ordinary people, Peter and Sue, whose lives are transformed by the extraordinary love they share. From the early days of their courtship in London in the swinging 60's their love blossoms into an enduring parnership that carries them through the ups and downs of raising a family and running a busy garage, while persuing careers and interests of their own.
Then just as they are on the brink of realising their dream of buying the freehold of their garage business a work related tradgedy prompts them to give up life in England and retire to the tranquility of the French countryside.
But their hard earned peace is soon shattered by the terrible news that Sue has cancer. Will their love be strong enough to see them through the greatest test of all?~For You There%27ll be No Crying|P170|~608~1252~~

More More France Please - Helena Frith Powell~What do you do when a semi-feral dog bites off the nose of a guest at your first French dinner ?…..~What do you do when a semi-feral dog bites off the nose of a guest at your first French dinner ? What when the well dries up ? What do you say to your French mistress ? Where to go if you don't want to see any compatriots ?
In More More France Please Helena Frith Powell writes wittily about the real-life stories of herself and fellow Brits in France. She reveals candidly what really goes on behind the beautiful limestone facades in France's loveliest villages !~More More France Please - Helena Frith Powell|P38|~608~1029~~

Two Lipsticks & A Lover - Helena Frith Powell~

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How do French women do it ? This is the book that reveals the simple secrets every French woman grows up with - how to achieve beauty without effort.~How do French women do it ? This is the book that reveals the simple secrets every French woman grows up with - how to achieve beauty without effort.
"Elegance is refusal" Coco Chanel~Two Lipsticks & A Lover - Helena Frith Powell|P62|~608~1031~zzz~

Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong - Jean-Benoît Nadeau & Julie Barlow~What makes the French so French?
The French.... smoke, drink and eat more fat than anyone in the world, yet have fewer heart problems and half the obesity rate of the British……~The French....
smoke, drink and eat more fat than anyone in the world, yet have fewer heart problems and half the obesity rate of the British.
work 35 hour weeks and take seven weeks of paid holiday per year, but are still the world's fifth-biggest economic power. So what makes the French so different ?
From a distance, modern France looks a riddle. Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong shows how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Approaching France like a pair of anthropologists, authors Jean-Benoît Nadeau & Julie Barlow use anecdotes and observations, history, political analysis and reflection to uncover the French national character, offering a fresh take on a country that no one seems to understand.
Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong is a journey into the French heart, mind and soul. Deciphering French ideas about land, food, privacy and language, Nadeau and Barlow weave together the threads of French society - from centralisation and the Napoleonic Code to élite education and even street protests - giving us, for the first time, a complete picture of the French.~Sixty Million Frenchmen Can%27t Be Wrong - Jean-Benoît Nadeau & Julie Barlow|P31|~608~1033~~

Provence A - Z - Peter Mayle~Organised from A-Z but far from a conventional work of reference, this is a selection of those aspects of Provence that Peter Mayle has found in his twenty years there to be the most interesting, delicious or downright fun.~Organised from A-Z but far from a conventional work of reference, this is a selection of those aspects of Provence that Peter Mayle has found in his twenty years there to be the most interesting, delicious or downright fun.
In more than 200 entries - from Accent to Zola - he writes about subjects as diverse as architecture, expatriates, lavender,linguistic oddities, the museum of the corkscrew and a bawdy folklore character named Fanny. And, of course, he discusses food and drink: truffles, olives, bouillabaisse and the cheese that killed a Roman Emperor.~Provence A - Z - Peter Mayle|B170|~608~1035~~

Home and Dry in Normandy - George East~Hardback - When George East and his wife buy a derelict mill in Normandy with only an overdraft and negative equity to their names, they are aware that it will take more than luck to realise their dream of living the good life…..~When George East and his wife buy a derelict mill in Normandy with only an overdraft and negative equity to their names, they are aware that it will take more than luck to realise their dream of living the good life.
What they have no inkling of, however, are the hilarious misadventures to follow, or the cast of unlikely and even bizarre characters they will encounter along the way.
This is the charming and true story of how one couple set out with a dream of moving to Normandy, and got far more than they ever bargained for.~Home and Dry in Normandy - George East|P10|~608~1037~~

Rene & Me - George East~As financial disaster looms, our heroes seek sanctuary in France…and at the Mill of the Flea. Will they survive, or fall prey to the wiles of René Ribet, the notorious fox of Cotentin?…~As financial disaster looms, our heroes seek sanctuary in France…and at the Mill of the Flea. Will they survive, or fall prey to the wiles of René Ribet, the notorious fox of Cotentin?
Told in the inimitable style which has already won the author an army of followers, René & Me is a sometimes hilarious, sometimes moving and always captivating celebration of human nature, people and, above all life and living…~Rene & Me - George East|P161|~608~1041~~

French Letters - George East~French Letters continues the true life, if highly improbable adventures of George and Donella East at The Mill of the Flea.
Once again, we visit the innocents abroad at home in the tiny Normandy community where time is cheap, good friends are priceless, and reluctant tractors are brought to life with a shot of home-brewed and highly illicit applejack brandy…..~French Letters continues the true life, if highly improbable adventures of George and Donella East at The Mill of the Flea.
Once again, we visit the innocents abroad at home in the tiny Normandy community where time is cheap, good friends are priceless, and reluctant tractors are brought to life with a shot of home-brewed and highly illicit applejack brandy. One again, we meet local characters and members of the Jolly Boys Club like JayPay, the giant superchef and moustache-growing champion of all Normandy.
Then there's Old Pierrot, who claims to have magical powers - and to have been on first name terms with William The Conqueror. Didier the dodgy dealer is still doing a roaring trade in blank Rubik's cubes, and the doughty Madame Ghislaine is still battling to keep the village store, bar and school open and her husband sober. And, of course, there is always René Ribet, the notorious Fox of Cotentin.
On this visit to the magical world of a master storyteller, we also encounter a whole host of English settlers, all determined if sometimes ill-equipped to make a go of a new life in a sometimes strange land. There's the vegetarian couple who find themselves moving in next door to a veal farm, and end up running a dormitory for homeless toads. And there's the would-be restaurateurs who put fillet of rat on the menu as dish of the day.
We also meet the star-crossed and disaster-prone Les Miserables and his wife Ono, so called by the locals because that is what she wails after yet another catastrophe occurs. And we must not forget Mad Madge, the former postmistress who encourages nests of hornets to take up residence in her home as she grows her own very illegal pot plants.
The tall stories and improbable adventures of the eccentric inhabitants of a magical but real-life location reach a dramatic climax as the Tour de France comes to the area, and the rival villages on either side of the route battle to catch the watching world's eye.
Determined to put their community on the map and save their school, the villagers of Néhou employ the services of René Ribet to pull off the ultimate coup, and The Fox of Cotentin lives up to his name as the Tour de France becomes the Tour de Farce....
"Quite simply the funniest book about real life in real France I have ever read..."
"When such experiences are presented by a raconteur of George East's stature, few people could fail to ignore all else until the book is devoured to the very last page..." ~French Letters - George East|P07|~608~1051~~

French Flea Bites - George East~Millions of readers around the world have already enjoyed the Mill of the Flea books, and French Flea Bites is the fourth in the series.
At the start of a new millennium, we find the author re-thatching the roof of a giant muskrat’s lair as he ponders on his life in and around le moulin de la puce and the tiny Normany community of St Georges de……~Millions of readers around the world have already enjoyed the Mill of the Flea books, and French Flea Bites is the fourth in the series.
At the start of a new millennium, we find the author re-thatching the roof of a giant muskrat’s lair as he ponders on his life in and around le moulin de la puce and the tiny Normany community of St Georges de Néhou.
Journeying through another eventful year with the innocents abroad, we renew our acquaintance with the Jolly Boy’s Club and meet new and even more bizarre characters like the English settler who believes he died in 1979, Ivan the terrible driving instructor, and a cat which becomes a werewolf at full moon.
Meanwhile, a plot is afoot to steal the life-giving waters of La Puce, and the rascally Fox of Cotentin is planning to turn a giant compost heap into the village’s answer to The Millennium Dome.
Obviously, all is 'normale' at the Mill of the Flea… "For anyone with a heart and a love of France, people and laughter, George East is an absolutely must read…"
"As we plough our way through the rice pudding of life, the La Puce books are definitely the dollop of strawberry jam on top…"
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mr East. Your books about real life in Real France have given me joy , hope… and a sense of relief that someone else has made even more of a cock-up of their French adventuring than us.."~French Flea Bites - George East|P05|~608~1043~~

French Lessons - George East~He’s back and this time it’s really serious! For more than a decade, former failed rock legend, seamstress and pickled onion manufacturer George East…~He’s back and this time it’s really serious! For more than a decade, former failed rock legend, seamstress and pickled onion manufacturer George East has been writing about his attempts to make a living out of rural France. As one critic said, George does failure very well. As so many East enthusiasts say, it is comforting to read about someone who has made even more cock-ups while buying and restoring property or moving to live in France than they have.
French Lessons is the seventh and (so the author claims) last book in the Mill of the Flea series. In previous episodes, our hapless and hopeless hero has amused, entertained and hopefully alerted millions of Francophiles to the potential ups and downs of being an innocent abroad. Now it is time for the Easts to finally accept defeat and return to Britain. Or is it ?
Fans of George’s unique style and ability to reflect real life in rural France will not be disappointed with the latest procession of barmy Brits, eccentric locals and bizarre circumstances he encounters; new readers may be forgiven for wondering how he has lasted as an extraordinary expat for so long-and why Donella ever lets him out on his own…~French Lessons - George East|P145|~608~1045~~

French Cricket - George East~At last! The eagerly-awaited fifth book in the Mill of the Flea series is finally out.
French Cricket tells the story of a long and eventful summer in Lower Normandy, with the author and his wife as ever struggling to make ends meet while George dreams up ever-more unlikely money-making schemes……~At last! The eagerly-awaited fifth book in the Mill of the Flea series is finally out. French Cricket tells the story of a long and eventful summer in Lower Normandy, with the author and his wife as ever struggling to make ends meet while George dreams up ever-more unlikely money-making schemes and tries to avoid getting to work on his latest book. As usual, Donella East is preoccupied with her ever-expanding menagerie of wild and domestic animals, including a ferocious cat that is believed locally to be descended from a werewolf, a giant eel named Elvis, a duck that is afraid of water, a flotilla of psychotic goldfish, two escapologist chickens and a gay bantam cock.
As the bank manager becomes a frequent caller and their life at the Mill of the Flea is threatened, our hero continues his sometimes unsteady progress around the area, especially after attending meetings of the local Jolly Boys Club. This strange gathering includes familiar favourites for fans of the series- such as Jaypay ( the current moustache-growing champion of All Normandy) René Ribet ( the notorious Fox of Cotentin)… and the club Chairman and resident immortal Old Pierrot, who claims to have been on first-name terms with William The Conqueror.
As the season of fetes and forgetfullness reaches a climax, our wayward author encounters a host of ever-more eccentric and bizarre local characters and British settlers, and hits upon a Big Idea which-this time- he is sure will finally bring financial security. As ever, things do not quite work out to plan, and the grand finale sees the author and his wife once again waiting at the railway station when their boat comes in…~French Cricket - George East|P04|~608~1047~~

French Kisses - George East~If anyone knows his onions about expatriate life in rural France, it is George East…..~If anyone knows his onions about expatriate life in rural France, it is George East. When he and wife Donella bought a dilapidated water mill in Normandy - a land where time is cheap and good friends priceless - nothing could have prepared them for the ups and downs they would face in their new life.
In French Kisses, another year of adventure begins with the couple struggling to make ends meet at the Mill of the Flea. As events unfold they encounter an array of eccentric local characters, from Jean-Claude, the seventy something carpenter-turned-gigolo, to the all seeing Luc, a descendant of Nostradamus who famously makes his predictions after the event.~French Kisses - George East|P17|~608~1049~~

A Perfect Circle - Susie Kelly~Keen to discover some of France's lesser-known attractions, Susie Kelly, her husband Terry and their two dogs embarked on a 10,000 kilometre journey, where they encountered exploding gherkins, killer waves, chilli-flavoured chocolates and sinister submari….~Keen to discover some of France's lesser-known attractions, Susie Kelly, her husband Terry and their two dogs embarked on a 10,000 kilometre journey, where they encountered exploding gherkins, killer waves, chilli-flavoured chocolates and sinister submarines.
They crossed the historic paths of Charlemagne, Vauban and William the Bastard, the battlefields of two world wars, and were bewitched by the Bayeux tapestry.
The camper van's exhaust falling off into the road on the first day, and one of the dogs persistently trying to eat the vehicle and its contents, did nothing to spoil the magical trip. The wonderful hospitality offered by characters kind, charming and quirky, enhanced it even further.
A cornucopia of sights, sensations, legends and history, A Perfect Circle is a must-read that will enchant Francophiles and armchair travellers everywhere.~A Perfect Circle - Susie Kelly|P77|~608~1053~~

Two Steps Backward - Susie Kelly~Susie Kelly and her husband Terry had long dreamed of owning a home in France, but ironically it wasn't until they were facing homeless penury in England…~Susie Kelly and her husband Terry had long dreamed of owning a home in France, but ironically it wasn't until they were facing homeless penury in England that they realized their dream. With five dogs, two parrots and their elderly horses, they moved to an old farmhouse in the Poitou-Charentes region with dirt floors, no water and a primitive electricity supply.
While Terry was back in England trying to support them all, Susie contended with a homicidal gas cooker at the bottom of the garden, burst pipes, a guinea fowl that turned somersaults and bit people on the shin and a constant stream of people turning up at her door with needs of their own. Sometimes the enormity of renovating a house with insufficient funds and little help seemed overwhelming.
She saw her husband infrequently. Their English neighbour was imprisoned on drug-smuggling charges. And when Terry developed a condition that brought him close to death, the dream threatened to turn into a nightmare.
There were times when Susie Kelly seemed to be taking two steps backward, but the kindness of the local community and the tranquillity of the landscape inspired them to make a new life for themselves and their animals in the place they now called home.~Two Steps Backward - Susie Kelly|P27|~608~1055~~

Narrow Dog to Carcassonne - Terry Darlington~"We could bore ourselves to death, drink ourselves to death, or have a bit of an adventure......"~When they retired, Terry and Monica Darlington decided to sail their canal narrowboat across the Channel and down to the Mediterranean, together with their whippet, Jim. They took advice from experts, who said they would die, together with their whippet, Jim.
On the Phyllis May you drive through six-foot waves in the Channel, are swept down the terrible Rhône and fight for your life in a storm among the flamingos of the Camargue. You met the French nobody meets - poets, captains, historians, drunks, bargees, men with guns, scholars, madmen - they all want to know the people on the painted boat and their narrow dog.
You visit the France nobody knows - the backwaters of Flanders, the canals beneath Paris, the heavenly Yonne, the lost Burgundy canal, the islands of the Saône and the forbidden ways to the Mediterranean. Aliens, dicks, trolls, vandals, gongoozlers, killer fish and the walking dead all stand between our three innocents and their goal - many towered Carcassonne.~Narrow Dog to Carcassonne - Terry Darlington|P92|~608~1057~~

Death in the Truffle Wood - Pierre Magnan~Banon is a small, peaceful village in upper Provence, where the local community's principal source of income comes from the cultivation and sale of truffles…..~Banon is a small, peaceful village in upper Provence, where the local community's principal source of income comes from the cultivation and sale of truffles. Tourists and outsiders rarely venture to this remote region, but a small group of society's drop-outs have chosen to set up home on the outskirts of the village, and trouble ensues.
When one of them is found dead in the freezer of a local hotel, and when a further five bodies are discovered hanging by their feet and drained of blood in the family vault of the cemetery, it takes all Commissaire Laviolette's considerable resources to unravel crimes that have been committed in a climate of centuries-old superstition and secret animosity.
Not since Jean Giono has any writer been able to capture the authentic flavour, spirit and traditions of Provence, where Pierre Magnan has lived for over eighty years.~Death in the Truffle Wood - Pierre Magnan|P52|~608~1059~~

The French Riviera - Ted Jones~The sunlight and calm of the French Riviera have been a magnet for writers since the fourteenth century…..~~The French Riviera - Ted Jones|P139|~608~1061~~

Cham - Jonathan Trigell~Deep powder, dead poets and moral free-fall in the death-sport capital of the world……~Long-dead Lord Byron started it - the rock star of his age. But a poet with about as much relevance to the blood grudge struggle that is modern life, as he has to the practice of sliding down snowy slopes on planks of wood. And yet, it was thanks to Byron that Itchy ended up living in Chamonix Mont Blanc, the death-sport capital of the world, amid the high mountains and low morals.
Itchy has tried hard with alcohol and adrenaline to numb a past he can't atone for. Now a serial rapist is stalking Cham's tourist-thronged streets, haunting the same shadows as Itchy and triggering an obsession which will lead him far from Europe's zenith, to the depths of the valley and himself.~Cham - Jonathan Trigell|P151|~608~1065~~

A Summer in Gascony - Martin Calder~A Summer in Gascony is a tale of two love affairs: an idyllic summer romance with his fellow stagiaire Anja and a lifelong love affair with Gascony with its village festivals, dusty roads and sun-baked wine country, which endures to this day…..~A Summer in Gascony is a tale of two love affairs: an idyllic summer romance with his fellow stagiaire Anja and a lifelong love affair with Gascony with its village festivals, dusty roads and sun-baked wine country, which endures to this day.
Full of colourful characters – the charismatic and convivial Jacques-Henri, the hardworking farmer and his family who take Martin into their home and hearts; the yoga practicing Germans; Pattes, the mischievous and lovable stray dog who brings havoc in his wake, Madame “Parle Beaucoup”, the town gossip who has a secret of her own and the memorable Monsieur Fustignac whose pride in his Gascon heritage is unforgettable.~A Summer in Gascony - Martin Calder|P152|~608~1067~~

C'est La Folie - Michael Wright~What do you do if you reach your thirties and still don’t feel grown-up?Why fritter away your life in front of a computer when you could be wielding manly power-tools? How do you learn to be a hero if you suspect you may be a wimp?~These and other pressing questions are what drove Michael Wright to give up his comfortable South London existence and set out, with just his long-suffering cat for company, for La Folie – a dilapidated fifteenth-century farmhouse in need of love and renovation in the heart of rural France.
Inspired by his much-loved newspaper column, C’est La Folie is the gloriously entertaining account of his struggle to make the transition from chattering townie to solitary paysan at one with the livestock, the locals and the landscape of his adopted home.
Witty and winningly honest, this tale of a new life abroad with a cat, a piano and an aeroplane is as much an elegy for rural France as a hymn to the simple pleasures of being alive.~C%27est La Folie - Michael Wright|B184|~608~1069~~

Letters from Leonardo - Iain Wodehouse-Easton~Leonardo da Vinci spent his final years in France at the court of the young King Francois I in Amboise, in the Loire valley…~Leonardo da Vinci spent his final years in France at the court of the young King Francois I in Amboise, in the Loire valley. Using Leonardo’s own texts, the author has recreated his close relationships and friendships and vividly brings to life the personality, thoughts and feelings of the renaissance genius in his declining years.
Amongst the intrigues of court life, he ruminates on what his legacy to the world might be. Reflecting on his successes as well as his failures, he revisits in his mind secrets loves of his youth. Above all, he bends himself to the achievement of his greatest ambition, that of manned flight. Both highly original and fascinating, this is a truly captivating read.~Letters from Leonardo - Iain Wodehouse-Easton|P119|~608~1071~~

French Spirits - Jeffrey Greene~When Jeffrey Greene, a prize winning American poet, and Mary, his wife-to-be, discover a moss-covered stone presbytery…~When Jeffrey Greene, a prizewinning American poet, and Mary, his wife-to-be, discover a moss-covered stone presbytery in a lonely village in the Puisaye region of Burgundy, they know they have to live there.~French Spirits - Jeffrey Greene|P09|~608~1073~~

Water Rites - Janet Carroll~Lily Weaver’s son was conceived in the last summer of love, 1970, in idyllic Achallat in rural France…~Lily Weaver’s son was conceived in the last summer of love, 1970, in idyllic Achallat in rural France. Nineteen years later, lily is forced to face her past when her son inherits his estranged father’s estate, Chez Reynat.
Reluctantly, Lily returns to France, determined to bury the past along with Dominic’s father. Haunted by Achallat’s legends, she is frustrated by the antics of her eccentric neighbours, who have their own ideas about the future of Chez Reynat…
Water Rites is an evocative and exquisitely told story of a young woman’s tormented soul. A captivating and hugely readable tale.~Water Rites - Janet Carroll|P140|~608~1079~~

En Gard: Reflections of Rural France - Alistair Scott & Sandy Thompson~Sandy Thompson writes: Moving from an English city to a French village is like moving to Pluto…~Sandy Thompson writes: Moving from an English city to a French village is like moving to Pluto. Another world. Not exactly the chance to re-invent yourself, more an opportunity to be the person you always knew you were - given half a chance.
'En Gard' describes the adjustments and the changes we have undergone, in attitude, in manners, in the colour of our socks. There are daily adventures, excitement and traumas, and some straightforward hard slog. The book is a patchwork; a reflection of our lives here. It also includes what Steinbeck called ‘hoopdedoodle’; descriptive asides in the form of letters to friends.
We found our house on the Internet. It was both beautiful and cheap. We convinced ourselves that it was next to a pig-farm or a nuclear power station – why else was it still for sale?
It turned out to be in a lovely village, in a lovely part of the Gard department in the far South - but old and neglected.
In the original idea we had imagined something more ready-to-go. We bought a camper-van and Alistair did 8000 kilometres looking for something better. He didn’t find it. So we decided to buy the house we loved, and to get our hands dirty. It was not straightforward.~En Gard%3A Reflections of Rural France - Alistair Scott & Sandy Thompson|B105|~608~1081~~

The French Century - Brian Moynahan~Hardback - This is a portrait of France and the French that sweeps over a century of history from 1900 to the present day…~This is a portrait of France and the French that sweeps over a century of history from 1900 to the present day.
Artists, engineers, innovators, entertainers, sports people and politicians, are arranged in a chronological examination of the people, events and influences behind twentieth century France.
In doing this, the author reveals the tensions that underlie French society today, be it around the issue of immigration, or the country’s in built aversion to change and reform as it confronts the forces of Anglo/American liberalism.
Illustrated with superb, historical black and white photography, this is a book for anyone who wants to understand what has contributed to the making of modern France.~The French Century - Brian Moynahan|P124|~608~1092~~

Voices from the Dark Years - Douglas Boyd~What was life really like in German-occupied France during the Second World War ?~What was life really like in German-occupied France during the Second World War ?
Douglas Boyd paints the clearest picture yet, using hitherto unpublished first-person accounts of ordinary men and women who lived through this extraordinary and dangerous time, when a few made fortunes, but most went cold and hungry.~Voices from the Dark Years - Douglas Boyd|P155|~608~1083~~

Café de Paris~Get in the mood with this superb collection of French Café music from famous artists like Edith Piaf…….~This is a compilation of artists who collectively comprised a genre known as French Café music and were popular in France during the 1930’s and 1940’s.
All of the most prolific of the artists are here including Maurice Chevalier, Charles Trenet, Lucienne Boyer, Jean Sablon, Yves Montand and Edith Piaf, to name a few.
There are fifty original and digitally remastered tracks in total on two compact discs. This gives a total playing time well in excess of two hours. Extremely good value at £5.99 and guaranteed to add that authentic French ambience.~Café de Paris|P118|~608~1090~~

Speak the Culture: France - Andrew Whittaker~

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A guidebook can show you where to go, a language guide what to say when you get there. Only Speak the Culture: France will lead you to the nation’s soul…~A guidebook can show you where to go, a language guide what to say when you get there. Only Speak the Culture: France will lead you to the nation’s soul.
This easy to use cultural companion considers how it feels to have grown up with Cézanne, Camus, de Gaulle and Bardot; it captures the spirit of France and delves deep into the Gallic psyche.~Speak the Culture%3A France - Andrew Whittaker|P117|~608~1085~zzz~

Vive La Rénovation! - Trevor Morris~Trevor Morris, a self employed builder, his wife and their three cats move to South West France to create a new life and business…..~Trevor Morris, a self employed builder, his wife and their three cats move to South West France to create a new life and business.
This collection of articles features fascinating characters and bizarre situations that highlight the differences and similarities between the two nations.
They are carefully observed, sharp, fast paced and guaranteed to make you smile.~Vive La Rénovation! - Trevor Morris|P114|~608~1087~~

A Chateau Of One's Own - Sam Juneau~It's the perfect read for anyone considering a grandiose home makeover project and for all of us who dream of a life in France…..~Sam and Bud were ordinary first-time homebuyers in their early thirties. Their intention in moving to France was to create a simple life and spend more time with their children. The home they actually bought was an impressive seventeenth-century chateau in the Lore valley with over thirty rooms, 156 windows and 40 acres of land.
With only modest savings, the couple launched the challenging project of restoring the crumbling monster of a building to its former glory and opening a bed and breakfast in the process. This is the hilarious story of behind the scenes at a B&B that required constant disaster relief: think Fawlty Towers in an extraordinary setting.
A Chateau of One's Own will appeal to those like Sam and Bud who want to escape from the rat race, who work hard and have hardly enough time to play. It's the perfect read for anyone considering a grandiose home makeover project and for all of us who dream of a life in France.~A Chateau Of One%27s Own - Sam Juneau|P106|~608~1089~~

Selling French Dreams - Alan Biggins~

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Alan Biggins moved to France with his family to study French. The job he took to finance his studies, selling property to the British, has taken him behind the scenes of rural France….~Alan Biggins moved to France with his family to study French. The job he took to finance his studies, selling property to the British, has taken him behind the scenes of rural France.
'It was a little cottage, one up and two down, with a barn on one end. With it came five acres of woodland, ferns and field - the size of a small English park. The owner wanted just £4000. "He doesn't need the money," commented Bernard sourly, "he's a Parisian."'
'"Do you have a shoe, Alain?" Monsieur Fouchard reflected for a moment. "Or preferably an old-fashioned fob-watch." I was coming to the conclusion that searching for water was a fairly low-tech operation.'
'I loved all these properties... the stone houses, the barns, the ancient orchards, the flower-choked lanes, the meandering streams ...but the farm by the boar forest was something special...'
And the author explains the pitfalls that can - and too often do - spoil "The French Dream".
Alan Biggins' first book, A Normandy Tapestry, was 'a magical evocation of an area and its people' Whether he writes of property or his progress in France, Selling French Dreams, too, is full of insight, wit and affection.~Selling French Dreams - Alan Biggins|P14|~608~1094~zzz~

Au Revoir Angleterre - Making A Go of Moving Abroad: Paul Jenner & Christine Smith~So life in Britain is getting you down. The rain, the bills, the daily grind. There's got to be something better surely ? Suppose you live abroad. Maybe Spain ? Or perhaps the South of France ? Or what about Greece ? Portugal ? Croatia ? You're certain….~So life in Britain is getting you down. The rain, the bills, the daily grind. There's got to be something better surely ?
Suppose you live abroad. Maybe Spain ? Or perhaps the South of France ? Or what about Greece ? Portugal ? Croatia ? You'd certainly enjoy a better climate. And you'd be able to try a different way of life. It would be less stressful, healthier, cheaper and better for the kids. You could even learn to water ski, or convert an old building, or own your own olive grove. Heaven!
Then again, you could find your problems travel with you. You miss your family and friends, you don't speak the language well enough and you can't make head nor tail of all the form filling you have to do in order to buy your dream home.
Paul Jenner & Christine Smith, expats who have lived in several countries overseas, have researched the most popular reasons Brits have for wanting to live abroad. In this book they will guide you through the pitfalls and highlights, the pros and cons of each one, so you know what you're doing, and never regret saying "Au Revoir Angleterre".
"Humorous, true to life and terribly entertaining. For anyone thinking of leaving the country this is a must have book". John Burton Race~Au Revoir Angleterre - Making A Go of Moving Abroad%3A Paul Jenner & Christine Smith|P44|~608~1096~~

Arrazat's Aubergines - Patrick Moon~

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Rich in truffles, oysters, olives and aubergines, the Languedoc is a gourmet's paradise, but is it the perfect place for an ambitious young chef to open a restaurant ?..~Rich in truffles, oysters, olives and aubergines, the Languedoc is a gourmet's paradise. It is also full of wonders to explore: the secrets of olive oil and salt production, the Roquefort caves, the miracle of the sparkling Perrier spring. But is it the perfect place for an ambitious young chef to open a restaurant ?
Intrigued by Laurent Arrazat's determination to achieve perfection on a shoe-string, Patrick Moon rolls up his sleeves and pitches in. For a year he shares in the triumphs, disasters and sheer hard work of restaurant life. But will the VIP diners guess that he has never made mayonnaise before ? Or that he put the wrong sauce on the starter ?~Arrazat%27s Aubergines - Patrick Moon|P98|~608~1098~zzz~

Celtic Symbols: The Essential Guide: Clare Elizabeth Bonner~

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The origin and expression of the Celtic symbols is interestingly described by the author, who also examines the evolution of certain symbols, and how they have influenced artistic expression in modern times…..~The origin and expression of the Celtic symbols is interestingly described by the author, who also examines the evolution of certain symbols, and how they have influenced artistic expression in modern times.
The development of Symbols featuring the early mythologies of the Celts has been revealed by many artefacts found on Celtic archaeological sites. These symbols have been passed down in Celtic regions over centuries.
The book is well illustrated by numerous colour and black and white drawings.
The Glossary of Mythological Characters and Celtic terms, which is also included, provides a valuable reference source.~Celtic Symbols%3A The Essential Guide%3A Clare Elizabeth Bonner|P108|~608~1100~zzz~

Another Long Day on the Piste - Will Randall~Writer, adventurer, ex-teacher and veteran of umpteen travel disasters, Will Randall has fallen off donkeys in Spain and out of canoes in the Solomon Islands, but none of this has prepared him for a calamitous season as a ski-bum with a posse of raucous….~Writer, adventurer, ex-teacher and veteran of umpteen travel disasters, Will Randall has fallen off donkeys in Spain and out of canoes in the Solomon Islands, but none of this has prepared him for a calamitous season as a ski-bum with a posse of raucous, hard-drinking ex students.
In the charming Alpine backwater of Mont St Bernard, Will's adventures start badly when he spends hi first night in a freezing garage under a mountain of unwashed socks. Dismally unfashionable and hopeless at skiing, Randall realises he must compete for the attention of the local female population with goatee-wearing, lip-studded dudes fifteen years hi junior.
Disasters abound during his stint as a chalet girl for a lodge full of team-building American bankers. But when a Russian Oligarch arrives in the sleepy mountain resort with a motorcade of Humvees, dancing girls and trigger-happy bodyguards and selects Will to tutor his son, it would appear that rejection and public humiliation will turn out to be the least of Will's worries.
Wry, self depreciating and deliriously funny, Another Long Day on the Piste is a rollercoaster of a travel adventure, and essential après-ski reading.~Another Long Day on the Piste - Will Randall|B180|~608~1102~~

Crossing the Loire - Heidi Fuller-Love~"Wicked, witty and sometimes worrying - this is the perfect antidote to all those jolly Frenchman tales" FFP Profonde Publishing~"Wicked, witty and sometimes worrying - this is the perfect antidote to all those jolly Frenchman tales" FFP Profonde Publishing
Crossing the Loire is an important psychological moment, because France's most famous river is said to signal the climatic divide between North and South. But when Heidi Fuller-Love and her French lover quit their respective lives - and comfortably centrally heated homes - in London and Versailles in the late 1980's, to live in a tiny French hamlet with twice as many cows as inhabitants, they discover thay haven't just crossed a river, they have crosed over into a whole new way of life.
Settling into an ancestral family hovel with no heating to speak of, just enough hot water to spit at and sadistic decorative elements and electrical facilities which would be the envy of Death Row, they struggle to survive in a world populated by colourful characters like Lenin - worshipping Dédé, père Renard whose wife "no longer provides", Steamy Specs, the Mata Hari of Mouzon and Lulu, who lives with his brother, the "little nutter" in the old house by the church and beguiles the village with endless accordion renditions of the "The Chicken Dance".
Initially treated with great kindness, when the young couple decide to set up their own business, they find themselves pitting their wits against French bureaucracy and rural inertia, in a battle which threatens to drive them stark, raving barmy.
Packed with twisted humour, sticky camembert and plumbing tales to make your hair stand on end, Crossing the Loire is a wicked, witty and sometimes downright worrying - modern "Clochemerle" about moving to rural France. Not for the faint heart!~Crossing the Loire - Heidi Fuller-Love|B40|~608~1104~~

Savoie Fair - Dropping out and Fitting in: Caroline Guigonnet~

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Savoie Fair is the real-life story of Caroline's life over the last 11 years in the Belleville valley - dropping out of the City of London and fitting in to a village in the French Alps….~t leads you through setting up her various businesses, from a restaurant to a taxi service, the good and bad experiences encountered on the way, and the subsequent ups and downs that have followed.
An insider's, view of local life in the mountains with the choir, village theatre group and the fun of building a house from scratch.
A poignant insight into the differences between France and England, the French and the English. Only the Channel separtaes them, but they are miles apart !~Savoie Fair - Dropping out and Fitting in%3A Caroline Guigonnet|P45|~608~1106~zzz~

Instructions for Visitors - Helen Stevenson~Le village is a small town at the southernmost tip of France. Here a young Englishwoman fell in love with France…~Le village is a small town at the southernmost tip of France. Here a young Englishwoman fell in love with France, the French and one Frenchman in particular.
In her seductive, lyrical and witty memoir Helen stevenson writes not as an expat but as someone adopted by the villagers as one of their own. By Stefan, the Maoist tennis fanatic, who lives off his lover in solidarity with the unemployed; by Gigi, the chic boutique owner who dresses her ex-lover's girlfriends; and by Luc, the crumpled cowboy painter and part time dentist, who comes to embody both the joys and the difficulties of transplanting oneself into someone else's country, culture and heart.~Instructions for Visitors - Helen Stevenson|P101|~608~1108~~

The Five of Cups - Wendy Mewes~Zena hopes that a six month stay in Brittany will free her from the over-whelming sense of loss and regret at the end of a long-term relationship.
At 39, she can find a new direction in a foreign country ? Or will she remain locked in a spiral of mourning for the great love of her life ?……~Zena hopes that a six month stay in Brittany will free her from the over-whelming sense of loss and regret at the end of a long-term relationship.
At 39, she can find a new direction in a foreign country ? Or will she remain locked in a spiral of mourning for the great love of her life ?
In accordance with the maxim "tarot only tells you what you already know", Zena has to come to terms with the message of the Five of Cups and learn to accept her own responsibility for the future. She finds herself drawn into a world of magic and legend that opens her eyes to unexpected possibilities - but can she really shake off the powerful grip of the past ?
Set in the wilds of western Brittany, this atmospheric tale explores the themes of love, loss and renewal. Wendy Mewes, with her customary humour and sympathy, portrays a varied cast of characters facing personal challenges in the pursuit of happiness.~The Five of Cups - Wendy Mewes|P102|~608~1110~~

Life in a Postcard: Escape to the French Pyrenees - Rosemary Bailey~In 1988, Rosemary Bailey and her husband were travelling in the French Pyrenees when they fell in love with, and subsequently bought, a ruined medieval monastery, surrounded by peach orchards and snow capped peaks……~In 1988, Rosemary Bailey and her husband were travelling in the French Pyrenees when they fell in love with, and subsequently bought, a ruined medieval monastery, surrounded by peach orchards and snow capped peaks.
Traces of the monks were everywhere, in the frescoed 13th century chapel, the buried crypt and the stone arches of the cloister. Gradually, these fragments revealed the spirit of the place.
For the next few years the couple visited Corbiac whenever they could, until in 1997, they took the plunge and moved from central London to rural France with their six-year-old son.
Entirely reliant on their earnings as freelance writers, they put their Apple Macs in the room with the fewest leaks and sent Theo to the village school.
With vision and determination they have restored the monastery to its former glory, testing their relationship and resolve to the limit, and finding inspiration in a small mountain community that welcomed them.
Life in a Postcard is not just Rosemary Bailey's enthralling account of the challenges of a new life. It is also an exploration of the rugged beauty of French Catalonia, the southernmost corner of France, the pleasures of Catalan cooking and a celebration of an alternative, often magical, world.~Life in a Postcard%3A Escape to the French Pyrenees - Rosemary Bailey|P20|~608~1112~~

Deep France, A Writer's Year in the Béarn - Celia Brayfield~Novelist Celia Brayfield had never lived more than a taxi ride from Soho, until one day she decided to take a year off…~Novelist Celia Brayfield had never lived more than a taxi ride from Soho, until one day she decided to take a year off. With the computer and the cats in the back of the car, and the blessings of her student daughter, she drove South until the dawn came up in the Béarn, the most romantic, remote and rustic region of France.
Deep France is the diary of a writer's year in a tiny French village, trying to meet her deadlines, when a good thunderstorm could blow out the computer and there were always artichokes to pick. Its a walk in the swashbuckling footsteps of the Three Musketeers and King Henry IV, full of funny and perceptive anecdotes about the year in which France had to face the euro, the World Cup and Le Pen's presidential campaign.
Deep France is also about the dream of la France profonde, the love affair between the British - and the Australians, the New Zealanders, the South Africans, the Canadians, the Americans, the Irish and even the Parisians - and rural France. Grand passion or sad delusion ? Mutual adoration or unrequited love ? Who are these children of Peter Mayle and Marie Antoinette, and how do their lives work out?~Deep France, A Writer%27s Year in the Béarn - Celia Brayfield|P29|~608~1114~~

Almost French - Sarah Turnbull~A delightful new twist on the travel memoir…~A delightful new twist on the travel memoir, Almost French takes readers on a tour fraught with culture clashes but rife with insight and deadpan humour – a charming true story of what happens when Sarah meets a very French Frenchman.~Almost French - Sarah Turnbull|P49|~608~1118~~

A Piano in the Pyrenees - Tony Hawks~Inspired by breathtaking views and romantically dreaming of finding love in the mountains, Tony Hawks impulsively buys a house in the French Pyrenees…..~Inspired by breathtaking views and romantically dreaming of finding love in the mountains, Tony Hawks impulsively buys a house in the French Pyrenees. Here, he imagines, he will finally fulfil his childhood fantasy of mastering the piano, untroubled by the problems of the world.
However, Tony's hopelessly ill-prepared stumbling into the world of overseas home ownership is perhaps best read as a useful manual of how not to go about buying a house abroad.
He flirts with the removal business in a disastrous attempt to take his piano over to France in a dodgy white van; foolishly elects to build a swimming pool himself; and takes his experience of relationships to a new level when he finds himself co-habiting, not with a beautiful French woman, but with a middle-aged builder from West London.
Yet, as Tony and his friends haplessly attempt to integrate themselves into local village life, they learn more about themselves and each other than they ever thought possible.~A Piano in the Pyrenees - Tony Hawks|P84|~608~1120~~

Downhill All The Way - Edward Enfield~Fed up with questions about what he was going to do when he retired, Edward decided to get on his bicycle and ride from Le Havre……~Fed up with questions about what he was going to do when he retired, Edward decided to get on his bicycle and ride from Le Havre to the Mediterranean.
Armed with a tent and a smattering of French, he struggled in Normandy to get directions from old men tipsy on Calvados by 9am and hit his stride on the towpath of the Burgundy canal. He explored the mystery of what an ouvrier eats for lunch and was barred from a swimming pool because his trunks were too decent.
Through the Rhône and down to Provence and the Carmargue, Enfield is witty and informative as always.~Downhill All The Way - Edward Enfield|P104|~608~1122~~

How to be French - Margaret Ambrose~While most young girls like to think of themselves as princesses, Margaret thought that she was a French princess pre-revolution of course, but the whole time/history thing didn't seem all that important to a five year old. As she grew up Margaret gradual…~While most young girls like to think of themselves as princesses, Margaret thought that she was a French princess pre-revolution of course, but the whole time/history thing didn't seem all that important to a five year old. As she grew up Margaret gradually dismissed the princess fantasy, but never lost the desire to be French.
Thirty years later, stuck in a rut, thoughts of glamour, sophistication and exotic cheeses inspired Margaret to enrol in French lessons at the Alliance Francaise, the French cultural centre in Melbourne. She had no idea that learning verbs and vocab would be just a tiny part of the experience.
Learning French was less about immersing herself in the language and more about immersing herself in an alternate universe.
How to be French tells the story of how Margaret became a fluent French-speaking journalist, jetsetting to Paris to interview some of France's most famous actors and musicians.~How to be French - Margaret Ambrose|B110|~608~1124~~

Avignon of the Popes - Edwin Mullins~Hardback - At the beginning of the fourteenth century anarchy in Italy led to the capital of the Christian world being moved from Rome for the first and only time in history…~At the beginning of the fourteenth century anarchy in Italy led to the capital of the Christian world being moved from Rome for the first and only time in history. It was a critical moment, and it resulted in seven successive popes remaining “in exile” for the next seventy years. The city chosen to replace Rome was Avignon. And depending on where you stood at the time they were seventy years of heaven, or of hell—opinions invariably ran to extremes, as did the behaviour of the popes themselves.

It was during this period of exile that the city witnessed some of the most turbulent events in the history of Christendom, among them the suppression of the Knights Templar and the last of the heretical Cathars, the first onslaught of the Black Death, the final collapse of the crusading dream, and the first decades of the Hundred Years War between England and France, in which successive Avignon popes attempted to mediate.
The papal flight from Rome was fiercely castigated by Dante in The Divine Comedy, while during the later years of papal Avignon the enigmatic figure of Petrarch, the most celebrated poet and scholar of his day, loomed angrily over the city. In a dramatic dénouement Avignon became home to the “anti-popes”, rivals and enemies of the re-established Roman papacy.~Avignon of the Popes - Edwin Mullins|B192|~608~1126~~

The Vine Garden - Alex Dingwall-Main~What happens when the Provencal dream turns into mundane reality ? Bestselling author and garden designer Alex Dingwall-Main settled in Provence in the 1990's. But after ten years, the magic of creating gardens in this incredible landscape had gone. What…..~What happens when the Provencal dream turns into mundane reality ?
Bestselling author and garden designer Alex Dingwall-Main settled in Provence in the 1990's. But after ten years, the magic of creating gardens in this incredible landscape had gone.
What was once charming about rural life suddenly seemed maddening. So he set off on a journey to rediscover the gardens, the vineyards and houses at the very heart of France. A journey to decide whether he should stay or whether he should go.~The Vine Garden - Alex Dingwall-Main|P96|~608~1128~~

The Angel Tree - Alex Dingwall-Main~Alex Dingwall-Main has come across some very odd garden desires in his time. But none so odd as the rich, eccentric Frenchman who asked him to find the oldest olive tree in existence and fetch it to the Sou…~Alex Dingwall-Main has come across some very odd garden desires in his time. But none so odd as the rich, eccentric Frenchman who asked him to find the oldest olive tree in existence and fetch it to the South of France to take pride of place in his exquisite garden.
What follows is an evocative search through the South of France, Spain, Italy and Greece, through ancient olive groves, unscupulous dealers, divided families, hidden villages, local weddings, farcical disasters and miracles in holy places.
Set in the land of haunting beauty, Alex Dingwall-Main retells a quest for an evergreen chalice.
"The rollicking exploits of an English garden designer in France" Independent
"Escapist reading...Magic" The Times
"Riveting stuff" Sunday Times
"The gardening travelogue of the year" Good Book Guide~The Angel Tree - Alex Dingwall-Main|P34|~608~1130~~

From Here You Can't See Paris - Michael Sanders~A fascinating memoir about life in Les Arques (population 159), a hilltop village in a remote corner of France untouched by the modern era……~A fascinating memoir about life in Les Arques (population 159), a hilltop village in a remote corner of France untouched by the modern era.
It is the story of a dying community's struggle to survive, of an artist whose legacy begins its rebirth and of chef Jacques Ratier and his wife, Noelle, whose magical restaurant - the village's sole business - has helped ensure its future.
The author set out to explore the inner workings of a French restaurant kitchen but ended up stumbling into a wider, much richer world. Whether uncovering the darker secrets of foie gras or absorbing the lore of the land around a farmhouse kitchen table after a boar hunt, Michael Sanders learned that life in Les Arques was anything but sleepy.
You will discover its vibrant history and traditions of food, cooking and rural living, sharing a family's adventures as they find their way in a place that is sometimes lonely, often wondrous, and always fascinating.~From Here You Can%27t See Paris - Michael Sanders|P22|~608~1132~~

Families of the Vine: Seasons Among the Winemakers of Southwest France - Michael Sanders~A few good friends, a good meal, a glass of wine - what could be a more simple pleasure?…..~Why then does the subject of wine often seem so complicated ?
In Families of the Vine Michael Sanders shares his experience of two wonderful years spent among French winemakers and vineyards - two years in which he discovered that the story of the wine from vine to glass is as much about the people who make it, their history and traditions as it is a tale of yeast, grapes and barrel.
The families of this book all work in Southwest France growing malbec grapes, from which they have been making very good, very different wines for more than a hundred years.
The author follows them through the seasons, sharing the hopes of spring, the anguish of a summer drought, the mad rush of the autumn harvest, and then into the wine barns heady with the smells of fermentation.
Families of the Vine is not just a fascinating guide to wine and winemaking culture. It is a celebration of the breathtakingly beautiful French countryside, the delicious traditional food and, most importantly of all, a quite remarkable way of life.~Families of the Vine%3A Seasons Among the Winemakers of Southwest France - Michael Sanders|P87|~608~1134~~

The Olive Farm - Carol Drinkwater~The Olive Farm is a double love story. It is a lyrical tale of the real-life romance between actress Carol Drinkwater and Michel, a television producer, and of an abandoned Provincial Olive Farm - Appassionata - which they fall in love with and buy…~The Olive Farm is a double love story. It is a lyrical tale of the real-life romance between actress Carol Drinkwater and Michel, a television producer, and of an abandoned Provincial Olive Farm - Appassionata - which they fall in love with and buy.
And as the olives turn from green to violet, luscious grape purple to a deep succulent black, we are drawn seductively into carol and Michel's vibrant Mediterranean world.
We experience the highs and lows of Provencal life: the carnivals, customs and local cuisine; the threats of fire, the adoption of a menagerie of animals and a ready made family; potential financial ruin as well as the thrill of harvesting your own olives by hand - especially when they are discovered to produce the finest extra-virgin olive oil.
Rich and resonant, The Olive Farm effortlessly captures the joys of living in a warmer clime, of eating fresh Mediterranean food, swimming in one's own pool, and sharing all this with the love of one's life.~The Olive Farm - Carol Drinkwater|P25|~608~1138~~

The Olive Harvest - Carol Drinkwater~The moving successor to her earlier bestselling memoirs, The Olive Farm and The Olive Season……~Carol and her husband Michael, home after long and separate absences, look forward to spending the summer together on their beloved olive farm Appassionata. But a shocking blow leaves Carol alone, and the future uncertain.
Feeling isolated and with no loves to harvest, Carol ventures beyond the farm to explore other aspects of Provencal life - from hunting to bee keeping, the gypsies of the Camargue to the shepherds of the southern Alps, the ancient language to the ever present demands of family and friends. And ultimately, Provence's generous diversity - and Carol's own persistence in sharing it with those she loves - pave a path to joy.

"Drinkwater is a rare writer who tackles other people brilliantly...Vibrant, intoxicating and heart warming" Sunday Express
"The new leader of the pack" The Times~The Olive Harvest - Carol Drinkwater|B63|~608~1142~~

French Leaves: Letters from the Languedoc: Christopher Campbell-Howes~Christopher Campbell- Howes sought a new life as an author among the last hills before the Mediterranean.…~Christopher Campbell- Howes has been writing entertainingly about the South of France since 1991, when on the eve of his 50th birthday he signed his name on a Scottish education authority's resignation form, exchanged his headmaster's suit for shorts, T-shirt and straw hat and sought a new life as an author among the last hills before the Mediterranean.
His writing - including this little book, compiled from articles written for the Scottish press - now struggles against the distractions of a full life in his local community. But he hasn't quite gone native:
"French Leaves: Letters from the Languedoc" captures the scents, sights and sounds, the vibrant colours and earthy vitality of the area with British detachment, shrewd observation and unfailing humour. He hopes these stories are as much fun to read as they were to live.~French Leaves%3A Letters from the Languedoc%3A Christopher Campbell-Howes|P21|~608~1146~~

More French Leaves - Christopher Campbell-Howes~Following the success of his earlier book, French Leaves: Letters for the Languedoc, Christopher Campbell-Howes has again assembled a fascinating collection of his impressions of life in the south of France….~Following the success of his earlier book, French Leaves: Letters for the Languedoc, Christopher Campbell-Howes has again assembled a fascinating collection of his impressions of life in the south of France: from the enthronement of new Chevaliers in his village to Eric's anti-English club, from a rubbish dump protest march to a champagne yacht launch, from the terrifying sex life of the praying mantis, to agreeable moments in the arms of Miss Normandy, the author's keen eye and gifted pen open up an unparalleled sweep of Midi vignettes.
A tour de force of evocative writing compassionate, shrewd and funny.
Christopher Campbell-Howes has lived in the Languedoc since he resigned from the world of Scottish education in 1991. He divides his time between writing and making music; a pianist and conductor, he is also Organiste titulaire (ie. Official Organist) in Olargues, a lively mediaeval village, classed as one of France's most beautiful, halfway between Montpellier and Toulouse.~More French Leaves - Christopher Campbell-Howes|P69|~608~1148~~

Notes from the Languedoc - Rupert Wright~Revealed: The Last Mediterranean Secret…..~Not since AJ Liebling gorged himself in Paris has a writer attacked France with quite as much gusto as Rupert Wright does in this book.
He has discovered a wild land of sea and mountain called the languedoc, where eagles soar and flamingos paddle in the shallows of oyster beds. This is a land of endless vineyards and wild garrigue scrubland rich with the scent of wild herbs. Ruined Cathar castles with atutbulent history stand guard over great cities with dynamic political leaders.
Based in an old farmhouse with his young family, Rupert Wrights cycles with the locals, drinks the pastis as well as the wine and unearths a world about to change as a new and modern society emerges comically and sometimes brutally from a land forgotten by time, where the greatest crime is to be a Parisian.~Notes from the Languedoc - Rupert Wright|P23|~608~1150~~

An Englishman Amoureux - Michael Sadler~The French like to think they wrote the rule book when it comes to the art of l’armour. So how do they react when a “rosbif” tries to muscle in on the act ?…~The French like to think they wrote the rule book when it comes to the art of l’armour. So how do they react when a “rosbif” tries to muscle in on the act ?
After the romantic encounter in the Loire valley bathroom at the end of An Englishman à la Campagne, Michael Sadler dumps the University of Swindon and returns to France intent on winning the heart of Lou Charpin, his belle francaise. Easier said than done.~An Englishman Amoureux - Michael Sadler|P140|~608~1152~~

Bon Courage - Richard Wiles~A dilapidated, rat-infested stone barn set amidst thirteen acres of overgrown woodland and unkempt pasture might not be many people’s vision of a potential dream home…~But for English couple Richard and his wife Al, the cavernous, oak-beamed building in a sleepy hamlet of the Limousin region of France is perfect.
Tussles with French bureaucracy allied with fierce storms that wreak havoc on the property do little to dampen resolve as they immerse themselves in the calm of this quiet corner of France, taking trips in Richard’s balloon and starting their very own llama farm.
Their colourful, often eccentric neighbours are always ready to lend a hand: the jovial ex-Gendarme and his wife, who is able to foretell the weather; a lonely widow who offers copious amounts of gateaux in exchange for convivial chat; and a brawny cattleman with suspicious motives in offering to clean up the couple’s land.
This often hilarious and heartwarming tale is one of obstacles overcome and dreams fulfilled.~Bon Courage - Richard Wiles|P18|~608~1154~~

Bonne Chance - Richard Wiles~Deep in the Limousin countryside, Richard Wiles bought his dream home…~Deep in the Limousin countryside, Richard Wiles bought his dream home. But little did he expect to be living full time in the dilapidated farmhouse and struggling to finish the conversion during the insect plagues of summer and the harsh blizzards of winter.
Watched by his bemused neighbours, Richard pursued his more unusual dreams of raising llamas, hot-air ballooning and marathon running whilst trying to keep the roof over his head. Told with unfailing humour and optimism, this is a unique tale of overcoming the challenges of building a home, and a life, in France.~Bonne Chance - Richard Wiles|P83|~608~1156~~