PICK OF THE WEEK
“Savoir Flair: 211 Tips for Enjoying France and the French”
(Culture Crossings, $16.95)
Polly Platt is out to prove once and for all just how wonderful the French really are. A companion to Platt’s best-selling “French or Foe?,” “Savoir Flair” is about “being” in the French sense. It’s also a how-to book of mastering the French sense of time. Since everything in France takes longer–from making a phone call to making friends–Platt advises that visitors learn to adapt to the Gallic rhythms. “Knowing how and knowing where, about the things you might do in France and how to do them smoothly,” she says. It’s about the basics and about the unexpected. “France is a very old country,” she offers, “always changing, yet, like a river, always recognizably the same. Knowing the rules is a basic part of feeling comfortable.” The French think differently, says Platt–about everything. The book is full of tips on how to act well in France and peppered with anecdotes, both good and bad, from travelers. Consider some of the tips: “A shop not serving food doesn’t have public toilettes” or, in a similar vein, “Shut the W.C. door (after using it) in a private house, if you want to be invited back. ” (Platt points out that leaving the bathroom door open is a cultural taboo, “like blowing your nose in your napkin.”) Women get their own specific tip: “On the Metro, keep your eyes on your book or expect a kiss.” In addition, Platt includes tips on dining out, on driving and on the French love affair with dogs. (France is one of the few countries in the world where furry creatures can sometimes get better service than their human masters.) Is it worth all the hassle, all the effort of committing to memory the appropriate gestures and responses? Absolutely, says Platt. “Savoir Flair” is a fun and entertaining guide to French cultural do’s and don’ts. Anyone contemplating a visit to the City of Light and environs–whether for business or pleasure–would be the wiser for picking up this book. (ISBN: 0-9646684-1-6)
“Hidden Southwest”
(Ulysses Press, $18.95)
The fifth edition of “Hidden Southwest” offers new traveler-friendly features, such as author picks, walking tours, three-day getaway itineraries and Web site information. It also describes unique accommodations–a monastery, a tepee, a fire lookout station–and indigenous restaurants that serve Southwest cuisine. And, of course, it recommends the out-of-the-way attractions worth visiting. Best of all, though, are the small things that give the book, and the place, its distinctive flavor, such as kachina dolls or the Apache Trail or a walking tour of Old Tombstone. Santa Fe art galleries are highlighted, too, as are the traditional villages that line the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Range along the road to the Taos art colony. In addition to the usual sightseeing information, the guide also contains listings of annual events and tips on camping, hiking, canoeing, sportfishing, swimming, biking, skiing and golf. (ISBN 1-56975-203-6)
TRAVEL NARRATIVE
“The Gift of Rivers: True Stories of Life on the Water”
(Travelers’ Tales, $14.95)
Think of the great rivers of the world and you’ll usually find a story attached to them. Amazon. Nile. Mississippi. Tiber. Seine. Danube. Since time immemorial much of mythic significance has been attached to the concept of the river. Indeed, rivers have all but defined civilizations. Poets have praised rivers. Growing up in St. Louis along the Mississippi, T.S. Eliot referred to the river as “a strong brown god.” In this collection–another fine anthology from the San Francisco-based Travelers’ Tales–David James Duncan traces the route of the Columbia River in Oregon with a school chum. Wendell Berry offers his thoughts while canoeing up the Kentucky River. Isabel Allende, seeking a cure for writer’s block, allows the power of the Amazon to wash over her. And, after surveying its various mood swings, Mort Rosenblum concludes that the Seine is the lifeblood of the City of Light (“the city embraces its waterways like nowhere else on earth,” he writes). The work of David Quammen, Jan Morris, Barry Lopez, William Least Heat-Moon and Chris Offutt, among others, are also featured. A listing of river organizations rounds up the collection. (ISBN 1-885211-42-2)
TRAVEL MEMOIR
“A Trip to the Beach: Living on Island Time in the Caribbean”
(Clarkson Potter, $25)
Even bad things happen in paradise. When Bob and Melinda Blanchard left their gourmet food business in Vermont to open a restaurant on the Caribbean island of Anguilla, they thought they had it made. They had decided to leave chilly New England behind to open “the greatest restaurant in the Caribbean,” and they pulled it off. That is, until a four-storm hurricane devastated the island and all but destroyed the Blanchard’s dream. The island they “discovered” sounds too good to be true: no taxes, no unemployment, 85-degree temperatures virtually every day. And yet friends questioned their sanity once they announced they were going to move to Anguilla. But move they did. “A Trip to the Beach” describes in entertaining fashion their experiences on their island paradise and the often complex and frustrating complications that arise when they decide to pursue the “simple life.” “A Trip to the Beach” is sheer frothy pleasure–hurricanes and all. (ISBN 0-609-60694-8)
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Toni Stroud
Chicago Tribune
435 N. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611