Book Reviews
[Mayle] and his wife, Jenny, had vacationed often in the South of France, and finally decided to move there. "It's one of those areas that you can become addicted to quite quickly," he says. "Particularly the physical aspects: the light, the space, the beauty, the lack of crowds.... Mr. Mayle tells of his and his wife's encounters with the Provencal people, the countryside, the culture and the bureaucracy. There are the workers who tear apart and begin to renovate the house, arriving suddenly early one morning and departing just as unexpectedly, their return date unknown. There is the adventure of trying to move their new 1,200-pound stone table into the backyard. There is the truffle hunt, with dogs and even a pig; the smell of lavender and the solitude of the forests; the wine tasting, and tasting, and tasting; the chorus of toads; the pipes bursting in the freezing house in winter and the British tourists bursting into the now-famous writer's house in summer. And most of all, there is the food. Feast after Provencal feast, in restaurants small and large, fancy and cheap, and in the homes of neighbors and friends.
Mervyn Rothstein - New York Times
Stylish, witty, delightfully readable.
Sunday Times (London)
An account of the author's first frustrating but enlightening year in Provence opens with a memorable New Year's lunch and closes with an impromptu Christmas dinner. In nimble prose, Mayle...captures the humorous aspects of visits to markets, vineyards and goat races, and hunting for mushrooms.
Publishers Weekly
An amusing account of an English couple's first year as residents of rural Provence, from the unpleasantness of the winter mistral to the transgressions of summer tourists. Since the old farmhouse they purchased needed repairs, they were immediately beset with problems in dealing with the foibles of local craftspeople and officialdom, not to mention the neighbors—human and animal. Nowhere in France is the consumption of food and drink taken more seriously, and food preparation, dining, and wining anecdotes are prominent in virtually every chapter. A Francophile's delight, this is a highly entertaining book which also teaches a lesson in social life and customs. Recommended for most collections. Mayle is the author of such popular books for children as Where Did I Come From and What's Happening to Me. —Sondra Brunhumer, Western Michigan Univ. Libs., Kalamazoo
Library Journal