From the very beginning of Jeanne Feldman's Best Buys and Bargains in Paris you realize that she is acutely aware of the cultural differences at play in France. Her advice is sure to make your shopping experience the pleasure it is meant to be and should appeal to everyone, from tourists eager to do a little shopping in Paris, to long-time expats who will certainly find some old and new favorites.

I am not a shopper. My best friend put my feeling about shopping into words once, saying, "I regard time spent shopping as time that I am dead." Even so, I found the guide highly entertaining, very funny, and enlightening about cultural differences and similarities. I can see that it could be an invaluable guide for demon shoppers as well as phobic shoppers like me. I also like that it is so unapologetically idiosyncratic. Jeanne Feldman's personality comes through in the narrative -- very practical about getting a good deal and very astute in making observations about American and French ethos in the Agora.

This is a fun and useful book that has fed my many fantasies of traveling to Paris. When Jeanne Feldman writes of shopping for clothing in the "Fourteenth Arrondissement," you want to be there and see just what exactly the "Fourteenth Arrondissement" has to offer! Did you know that you can get a tax refund if you spend x number of dollars in a Parisian store? Feldman explains how this works, and much, much more.

Paris is normally thought of as an expensive place to live -- and of course it can be -- but the author shows you how to circumnavigate this popularly conception of Paris. It may make an expatriate of you, as it apparently has of her.

The book is divided into convenient chapters, so that whether you are eyeballing food, clothing, perfumes, supermarkets, wine, flea markets or more, she will send you to the right places once you read the right chapters. Because her prose is to the point, you won't be bogged down with unnecessary details. The book will fit conveniently into your day-pack or handbag.

A satisfied consumer, Larry Fike )

I never knew how grand the bakeries of Paris where until I read Boulangerie! I wish we had a similar tradition in my home town. I love bread and soup above all other foods! Some day, when I visit Paris, I'll search the city with a copy of this pocket guide in my hand.
I also enjoyed the pictures of the boulangeries of Paris on the authors Web site: Dorseybooks.com

Let's face it, whether you are visiting Paris for the first or the fifth time, there never seems to be enough time to squeeze everything in. Everyone should take at least one evening or one afternoon for a 3-star dinner or lunch; but, when you are busily going from sight to sight, who has that kind of time? This book is perfect for letting you find bakeries with a wonderful range of foods you can carry away with you. I found that the descriptions of each bakery carried their specialities and any unusual items they carried. The first time you find a conveniently located establishment when you are trying to get from point A to point B, you will know what a treasure it is. The size makes it very convenient to take with you as well.

This book is a jewel. It made our first Paris trip that much more special by introducing us to some exceptionally fine bakeries. This pocket-sized book not only gives you a listing of the fine Boulangeries (organized by arrondisements, includes the address & phone number, closest metro or bus stop, when they are open, and what's special about each) but tells you where to go (nearby picnic spots) and eat the bread and goodies that you buy at these Boulangeries -- this is what truly made the book special. We tried "Robineau" in the 7th and "Gerard Beufort" in the 5th as listed in this book and we were not disappointed. Both had wonderful baked goods, the former within a short walk to the Champ de Mars and Eiffel, and the latter, a 3-minute walk away from Arenes de Lutece, the ancient Roman amphitheater which is a perfect picnic spot. You could use this book to plan your breakfasts and picnic lunches as a nice balance to the Bistro-dining in Paris.

Christian Dior: The Early Years provides the inside story at the House of Dior, from its introduction of the 'New Look' to 1957, upon Dior's sudden death. When Christian Dior presented his first collection, the young designer presented clothing which featured narrow waists and beautiful evening dresses: a new look for the fashion world of the mid1940s. He drew each dress himself and his designs would change the fashion world of his times. The oversized presentation of this volume allows for fullpage displays of his works accompanying a biography of his life and achievements.

Born in a small village in Normandy, Christian Dior did not hesitate to disobey a parental injunction to undertake a "serious occupation." He knew what he wanted and fled to Paris where he became a designer at Robert Piguet.

The City of Lights was gray in 1946; there had been the war, German occupation, and rationing. But, luck was with Dior. He met the country's richest and most powerful industrialist, Marcel Boussac, who offered to back the young designer. Space became available at 28-30 Avenue Montaigne, an address well known to fashion aficionados today.

In 1947 Dior introduced his first collection, and the world was ready for his innovative return to the feminine figure with narrow waists, long skirts, and an attractive bustline. The rest, as they say, is history.

All interested in the world of fashion will delight in this detailed history of the workings of Dior's fashion house, and the remarkable people who worked for him in developing a boutique and perfume which would enjoy worldwide acclaim. Also included are stories of his famous clients, such as Marlene Dietrich, Lauren Bacall, Rita Hayworth, Ingrid Bergman, and the Duchess of Windsor.

Enriched with some 100 illustrations this keepsake volume concludes with "Monsieur Dior's Fashion Vocabulary" and a timeline noting events after Dior's death in 1957 to the present day.

- Gail Cooke

Christian Dior: The Early Years 1947-1957 by Esmeralda de Rethy (daughter of Princess Liliane of Belgium who was one of Christian Dior's very first clients) and fashion historian Jean-Louis Perreau is an incredible, superbly illustrated and informative coffee table book providing a vivid fashion record perfectly capturing the founding of an empire of style in the post-World War II decade. Full-page photographs, some color, some black and white, many nearly half a century old, adorn the pages along with Dior's original sketches and commentary. The text traces the travails, efforts, and world-class achievements in clothing, style, and love of life in this high society treasury. Christian Dior is very highly recommended reading for students of 20th Century fashion history in general, and the influential contributions of Christian Dior in particular.

If you have visited Paris and loved it you will love this book. Its delicious weaving of the sights, smells, tastes and texture of Paris in the 1960's quickly gets you in and you are hooked.

Here you meet the principal characters, Tom, a truculent Englishman and his new wife Jane, an Australian girl from a far distant and contrastingly naive world of gum trees and koalas who have arrived to stake a claim at the fringes of the capital of culture.

Jane's heart sinks when she hears another Australian accent as Sally washes up in Paris and breaks in on her bohemian world. Tom, a confirmed "leg man" (its the implications of legs that attracts him)has to revise his scientifically precise scale of perfection to accommodate the "implications" of the beautiful new arrival.

How Tom and Jane end up getting both rather more and rather less than they bargained for in this triangle is the twist here and as they do so they learn a lesson in worldliness and win the reader's affection.

It is a great book for travellers (which by definition includes most Australians), those who are interested in the Paris of Sartre and anyone who likes a story about self discovery.

Paris in the Sixties - the last days of the Bohemian Paris of Joyce, Hemingway and the Left Bank. Soon the reaction to the student revolution of 1968 will lead to a conservative backlash and to a modernised, suburbanised Paris, but as yet it is still an escape from the cultural deserts of Australia and Northern England. A young couple are living on meagre earnings from teaching English in a run-down language institute; in their spare time Jane paints, Tom writes poetry. Their apartment, it turns out, has a direct connection to the rat-infested sewers of the city, but they are happy with their alternative lifestyle until they invite an unusual, but fascinating person to live with them. They are then made to realise what a really alternative lifestyle means. Are Tom and Jane a match or a mismatch? The novel, while showing the bitter-sweet quality of the young couple's relationship and giving a nostalgic picture of a now-vanished Paris, is full of comic episodes, notably the description of the language school and of the adventures of Sally, the couple's wild friend.

I loved this book! Vibrant, warm, clever, subtle, fabulous characterization, great atmosphere -- I felt like I'd lived in bohemian 60s Paris just through reading it. Her compassionate portrayal of these complex characters makes for a rewarding and sustaining read: you have to admire the author's skill at giving such lyrical and realistic expression to this all-too-human couple's dilemmas. Patricia Page allows the reader to see the world from the inside out, her manipulation of characters is so subtle as to be almost invisible. A particularly fine achievement for a first-time writer. The story involved, enthralled, delighted me -- and it was only long after I put it down that the magic dispelled, and I could realise fully Page's skill. Highly recommended. It'll make you think twice about wearing a skirt.

Entertaining, easy+to+read and inspiring. It would make an enjoyable collection for elementary, high school and college, not only that adults.. and can be used as text or supplement for Deaf Studies, Sign Language Classes or American History including Deaf American Indians. Happy Exploring! A very few book like DEaf Esprit where you can find that they have challenges to overcome... being Deaf may be among their challenges.. what a way to lift up the spirits..finding page after page of inspiration like Henning C. F. Irgens, Majoriebell S. Holcomb, Damara Goff Paris' and Glenn Alfred/Karen B. Johnson, The Dine and the others.

I strongly recommend that you read this book! From Charlotte Wilhite's struggle to determine whether her deaf son should have a cochlear implant and Jake Donnell's frank discussion on how his family should accept, rather than fix him, to Henning Irgen's life as a deaf teenager in Norway during the Nazi occupation. Also of note is Damara Paris' vivid description of an India-born deaf man and his struggle to prove his independence, Donna Platt's humourous take on her Phillipine name sign and the poems written by Rusty Wales, Carrie Pierce and Marianne Decher. A MUST read!

This book was one of the best books I have ever read! It is a potpourri collection of different deaf perspectives and perspectives from their family. Charlotte Wilhites moving story regarding all sides of the cochlear implant controversy as she considered whether to implant her son moved me to tears! Equally good was Henning Irgen's story about growing up deaf in Nazi-occupied Norway. Damara Paris (also an editor for this book) wrote beautifully of the struggle for independence for an India born deaf man.

You won't be able to put this book down!

I have read all of Van Horne's books and this is definitely my favorite! I learned so much about the French Revolution from reading this book. It was obvious that Ms. Van Horne did her research! All of her books have way of taking you on the journey with the character. Fantastic! I recommend any of her books to people who are intrigued with romance, time travel, or just a great story!!

The fifth book in the exciting "Time Travelers" series, The Diary of Jean-Jacques Coupier by Hollie Van Home is the engaging story of Celeste Montclaire, a contemporary woman who falls into a Time Tunnel and finds herself transported to 1793 Paris -- smack into the middle of the French Revolution. With loves and loyalties on both sides of the growing conflict, she must make her choices quickly; her very life hinges upon them! A rousing and engaging novel, in touch with its chosen era of history, The Diary of Jean-Jacques Coupier is especially recommended for science fiction fans with a penchant for time travel stories.

I have read all the Time Travelers books and I love them all, but I think this one may turn into my favorite because I think that this may be the best book I have ever read in my life. I got the book on a Tuesday and just read it non-stop until I was done. Her books are like that. You can't put them down. The characters just grab you and won't let go. I had to find out what would happen to them. The finest glimpse into the past you will ever read. If you have never read a book in this series, then you are missing one of the best new writers on the market today.

Eugene Bullard was an African American man who was born in 1895 in Columbus, Georgia, and lived a really fascinating live. After leaving the U.S. in 1912 to escape the existing suffocating racist oppression, he stayed first in Britain, and then settled in France where he lived as a boxer, entertainer, jazz drummer, was a war hero in the trenches in Verdun, and become the first African American combat pilot in 1917 (in French service: the U.S. would allow black combat pilots only in 1941...). After the war, like so many other African Americans, he remained in Europe. He become a well known entrepeneur in the Parisian night club life during the 20s and 30s. At the German invasion in 1940, and after a brief stint in the French army, he went back to the U.S. where he died in New York in 1961. Revered in France as a national hero during is life, and completely unknown in his country until more than twenty years after his death, the life of this extraordinary man has in this book a much deserved homage and, probably, its definitive biography.

A very well documented biography on a genuine American and French hero. Unfortunately he was born during the Jim Crow era in the south (even though the constitution which was written over 100 years before his birth mentions "all men are created equal", this did not include any non-caucasian's or women, did it? Did not use the word minority since it denotes less than some majority, there are more non-caucasian's in the world anyway and what is really meant by that word is just that, non-caucasian. I find it odd that the USA was founded by European descendants like the English, French and even though the country prided itself on it's progresive nature, it did not include equality, even though Europe itself did not practice racial discrimination). He was born the seventh child of a large family and his father always had a premonition of a very distinguished future for him and let it be known to him when he was young. Talks about his travel through the south after he left home and was told early by his father of a country (France) where all men are truly free. This had a profound effect on him because he eventually made it to France via England first.

He began his livelyhood as a theatre performer and boxer; two opposing and similar avocations. He joined the military and became the first Black American and Black Frenchman aviator and was awarded medals for his bravery, dedication and skills. Very well liked, he had a contagious personality and started working at a famous Paris club later in life and eventually became a club owner himself. He met the famous of the day like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Langston Hughes, Bricktop and many others. This biography also got me interested in Jazz age Paris to request both autobiographies of Hughes and Bricktop.

Slowly (too slowly) more is being known about this man and his acomplishments and contributions to the human race.

You won't be able to put it down. Jack Johnson's autobiography "In the Ring and Out" is another good bio of that era too.

I had earlier learned of some of Eugene Bullard's exploits, but Craig Lloyd's book spotlights an endless list of amazing achievements that seem unbelievable for any man to accomplish in just one lifetime. It's a shame Bullard's life has been up to now unexplored and uncelebrated. Hopefully this extremely well-researched biography will fix that.

You always wonder as you read guide books how much the bar owner or hotel proprietor knew about the writer -- did they guess the guest was covering travel? I don't really trust most of the guides on food and hotels. This book is a delightful solution to that dilemma.

Everybody knows the Georges V and the Bristol can pamper you if they want to or that the dry martini's at the Ritz bar remain flawless.

Caroline O'Connell's deftly written guide tips its hat to obvious elegance but it's equally on target with swell places whose tariff does not require you to squander a fortune.

Her taste is flawless and she writes for those who travel in style. You can bank her recommendations. Concise, small enough to pack and light enough to carry, we've found it by far the best and most useful guide to Paris. No book has it all, but this has a lot and what it has is more than worthwhile. It's really quite well done and not to be missed.

As a former resident of Paris(and moving back in September for college)I thought I had read every book there was on the City of Light, so I was pleasantly suprised to come upon this one which was very informative and well written. Many of the tips given were ideas I had never even considered. Examples of this would be having tea at the Ritz Hotel, and calling the fashion houses for invitations to their shows. Also, I found many places that I added to my address book and am eager to peruse in the future. This is the perfect book to take with you on the flight over and to refer to for the duration of your trip. A great find at a very reasonable price. Vive la France!

This book is a definite must for any woman visiting Paris! It will help one experience that "joie de vivre" that only Paris can offer. It's a great guide to understanding and adapting to traveling in the city, further, it's a wonderful guide to meeting that man of your dreams in the most "romantic city in the world." Ms O'Connell should write a sequel on getting married in Paris!

This book was sent as a gift last summer before three of my friends and I went to Paris last fall. It was one of the most helpful, concise tools for selecting eating places in Paris. It is so well organized, fits in one's handbag, and was helpful in selecting eating places that didn't "bust the budget" but were delightful. I think it is a must for the Paris traveler of many times(like me) or the first time visitor. Dom't leave home without it!

An accurate assessment of many Paris bistros and small restaurants throughout the city. Amusing personal anecdotes and helpful hints on places to dine in all arrondissements drawn from years of experience. This guide is essential planning for the first-time as well as the seasoned traveler.

This guide is essential for all those traveling to Paris. I love that you can pick restaurants based on location or rating. Additionally, the essays describing the authors' trips were enjoyable to read. I found the ratings to be consistent and easy to follow, and would recommend this book to anyone planning a trip!

I hadn't planned on buying another Paris guidebook, since I've been to Paris twice before, but as I was leafing through the Unofficial Guide to Paris (looking for a particular piece of information), I realized how much information this book contained that was different from other guidebooks. So I broke down and bought it! I really appreciate the perspective of the authors, who have written the book for people who are somewhat price-conscious and perhaps looking for some Parisian experiences that may be slightly off the beaten path. I particularly like the book's organization and the authors' practical insights. I like it when guidebook authors actually offer opinions and don't just list information that may turn out to be a poor choice. Well done!

As a Paris veteran I was pleased to pick up and read an excellent Paris guide written for the everyday traveller. Applefield and Sehlinger have proven to understand the moderate cost traveller more then any other guide book currently on the market. This, and their ability to educate the novice and amuse the Paris regular proves they have written this for everyone. The advice is useful and to the point, while not being from the USA (Canada to be exact) I can appreciate the advice given to the general readers. Very informative and an excellent buy, worth every penny.

This book is full of practical information on everything from planning your trip to cultural customs. It contains just the information a first-time traveller to Paris needs to know, but also has useful information for the more experienced. It is also an entertaining read. By far the best guidebook to Paris I have seen.