by Eloisa James
First published 2012
In 2009, New York Times bestselling author and Shakespeare professor Eloisa James makes a bold decision. She sells her house, takes sabbatical leave, and relocates her entire family to Paris for one transformative year. James navigates daily life in the City of Light with her Italian husband, two children aged eleven and fifteen, and even the family dog Milo. She explores hidden corner museums that most tourists miss, observes Frenchwomen's fashion choices, and walks across the city from end to end. Meanwhile, she manages her husband's ideas about spending quality time together, watches her children adapt to French schools while dealing with adolescence in a foreign language, and handles her mother-in-law's kitchen critiques and tendency to overfeed Milo. James finds joy in ordinary Parisian pleasures while her family adjusts to their new surroundings. This memoir captures one family's adventure of embracing French culture, food, and joie de vivre during their extraordinary year abroad.
Genres: family, autobiography, memoir, non-fiction, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Paris
Period: 2009
272 pages · Unknown Binding · Random House