The Thumbnail Book Reviews
by John Q McDonald --- 4 January 2001
edited by James O'Reilly, Larry Habegger, and Sean O'Reilly
This is an unusual "travel" book. It is a collection of about thirty short works describing about thirty different sides of life and travel in and around the City of Light. There are touching personal essays, dramatic stories, history, adventure, food, romance. Most are by established, but not fabulously well-known, authors. Their personal touch gives Paris an intimate feel. There are notes about well-known landmarks, from the Louvre to Versailles. There are more obscure tales from the Museé du Pain to the Turkish baths. And there is the dark side of Paris today and in history, from the guillotine to bulldozing neighborhoods for the new Bibliothéque Nationale. Longer stories are interspersed with quotes and excerpts that make the book lively and even sometimes touching. The book brings Paris and much of France to life. It is a good read for either one going to Paris or the armchair traveler. It is one of a series of Travelers' Tales books (at least two more of which I'm planning to read), which range all over the world and sports a good bibliography for further reading.