Paris Was Ours

To many Americans, Paris is gloss. Television series - Sex in the CIty, Gossip Girl and even the sturdy medical drama ER - use it as an exotic backdrop. Woody Allen's new "Midnight in Paris" conjures up the bohemian fantasy that Paris still represents, although more avant garde types are now inclined to view Prague (ironically, the actual, original Bohemia) as closer to the spirit of Paris in the 1920's and 1950's. But Carrie Bradshaw, Blair Waldorf and Woody Allen's stock characters are brief visitors who parachute in and just as abruptly leave. In "Paris Was Ours," editor Penelope Rowlands collects 32 writers who are determined to live in Paris among Parisians, rather than skim the surface as privileged tourists or circulate in tight hermetic expatriate communities as Hemingway and Fitzgerald did.Beyond artistic inspiration, in the twentieth century Paris represented personal freedom (and an insanely favorable exchange rate) for the "Lost Generation" of the 1920's who were stultified by Prohibition, and relief from racial discrimination for African-American artists ( James Baldwin, Nina Simone) in the 1950s and 60s. It is not clear what drives Americans to want to experience Paris today, and "Paris Was Ours" does not shed much light on that issue. In that regard, the most disappointing chapter comes from one of the more famous contributors, David Sedaris, whose scant essay is predictably humorous (and scatalogical) but could have been written anywhere. Instead, some of the more compelling chapters are those written by non-Americans. To Roxane Farmanfarmaian, Paris offers political freedom and escape from the revolutionary Iran of the late 1970s. Zoe Valdes is by fortunate happenstance sent to Paris as a form of diplomatic exile by a Cuban government so doctrinaire in the 1980's that "in the minds of the Communists, the reward was Moscow - Paris was a punishment."Readers who have endeavored to live in Paris may well remember - and secretly enjoy - the frustrations that the authors chronicle in daily life. Rowlands herself is refused a hard-boiled egg by a waiter because she is unable to pronounce a difficult vowel. An English schoolgirl is slapped at Versailles by a French passserby for straying onto the grass; the incident is all the more remarkable because the slappee is a daughter of Lady Antonia Fraser. But these obstacles (and insults) are cherished battle scars and only serve to deepen the magnetic draw to Paris. In the end, Rowlands has the title backward. Paris was not theirs; instead, they ended up belonging to Paris.

As other reviewers have stated, "Paris Was Ours" is unique in that it doesn't just glorify the city, but also shows the day-to-day hardships faced by its residents. Rowlands writes: "Vacation syndrome is dangerously seductive. You actually believe that this magical place you have come to allows you to be the contented, stress-free person you really are. There's a lot of vacation syndrome in Paris." And the thirty-two stories that follow show that it's not all baguettes and eclairs in the City of Light. The city is expensive, it can be mean and in some cases, impossible to live comfortably. I really enjoyed some of the stories, while others left me a bit bored. However, I think all of the contributions were worthwhile and I certainly recommend reading this book if you love Paris.

I love Paris Was Ours. I checked it out from the library several times, and decided to buy it. I bought a great used one that seems brand new, at a very low price. I lived outside the U.S. for ten years (never in France), but it reminds me of the good times, the bad times, the transformation I went through, and the wonder of it all.

I was surprised that the stories were so old, considering the date of the book is 2011. So many of the stories were from the 70's and 80's, which I think are so outdated. Most of them were boring, a couple of them made no sense what so ever. I also found it hard to believe a homeless woman could have a blog. Where did she have access to a computer? Her story sounded totally made up and not believeable. I found many of the stories weren't really about Paris just because the person happened to be in Paris. Didn't really have anything to do with the city.If you are looking for stories for some insight into Paris or French culture, look elsewhere. I was pretty disappointed in this collection. With 32 different stories, I would think more than a couple would interest me, but they didn't.

Purchased from amazon.comThis most entertaining book was a compilation of 32 contributing essays by people who manged the impossible dream of living in Paris. I enjoyed all but one of the first hand experiences of grappling the culture shock that confronts expats trying to become a citizen of Paris. The only essay that was like reading a foreign language was written in half English and half French. When I finished reading it I had no idea of what I had just skimmed through.If becoming a Parisiene is this difficult I am surprised that anyone who was not born in France actually survived the many differences and hardships that one encounters in Paris (labor strikes, short and sporadic hours of operation for cafes, markets,etc.) and trying to deal with various shop owners who, until you get on their good side, can be very nasty and rude.Penelope Rowlands lived in Paris as a single mother with a 10 year old child who was constantly being yelled at (and worse)for unknowingly committing no-nos which are not tolerated by the French.Why do some endure all of these imposed barriers while others throw up their hands and exclaim Assez!This collection of essays was entertaining and explains the many nuances associated with living as an expat in the City of Light.

The romance and grayness of Paris. This book holds the reality of living in the City of Light, the beauty and melancholy of Paris, any big city actually. Most of the stories were very well-written, funny and insightful and others just fell flat. But that is expected with a compilation of short stories; one usually doesn't love all of them. While I highly recommend this book, it is important to note that most stories were not written in the present, last ten years, but within the memories of the authors.Having visited twice, Paris holds romantic dreams for me. During and after reading these stories, I was/am eager to go on holiday and fall in love with Paris again.