Hotel Splendide

by Ludwig Bemelmans Narrated by David de Vries

Overview

Acerbic, colorful, and spirited stories from a bygone era: behind the scenes in a grand New York hotel, from the author of the Madeline books



Picture David Sedaris writing Kitchen Confidential about the Ritz in New York in the 1920s, which had the style and charm of The Grand Budapest Hotel . . .



In this charming and uproariously funny hotel memoir, Ludwig Bemelmans uncovers the fabulous world of the Hotel Splendide-the thinly disguised stand-in for the Ritz-a luxury New York hotel where he worked as a waiter in the 1920s. With equal parts affection and barbed wit, he uncovers the everyday chaos that reigns behind the smooth facades of the gilded dining room and banquet halls.



In hilarious detail, Bemelmans sketches the hierarchy of hotel life and its strange and fascinating inhabitants: from the ruthlessly authoritarian maître d'hôtel Monsieur Victor to the kindly waiter Mespoulets to Frizl the homesick busboy. Bemelmans' tales of a bygone era of extravagance are as charming as they are riotously entertaining.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

An uproarious account of his life as a waiter at the thinly disguised Ritz-Carlton in the 1920s . . . He is a canny observer with a wry sense of humor, an innocent bystander who simply looks on. He’s like P.G. Wodehouse, with a touch of the Marx Brothers. . . . a delight from beginning to end.”
—The Wall Street Journal

"Hotel Splendide, Bemelmans’s 1941, out-of-print memoir, which is being reissued by Pushkin Press this month, is a delightful passport to a long-lost era"
—Air Mail

“The original bad boy of the New York restaurant/hotel underbelly. Bemelmans is always funny, insightful and dead on target.”
—Anthony Bourdain

“Freshness and vitality…wit, humor, pathos, and the inimitable Bemelmans’ touch.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“The kitchen memoir to end them all.”
—Slightly Foxed

“A seemingly light-hearted yet deceptively dark memoir of [Bemelmans'] time working in a luxury hotel in 1920s New York. A gently flowing, delightfully gossipy read, I could easily picture the entirety shot in black-and-white vignettes, Woody Allen style.”
—Irish Times

“A charming memoir.”
—Independent

“Immensely fun and an absolutely charming book... a beautiful classic” 
—WAMC North East Public Radio Book Picks.

NOVEMBER 2023 - AudioFile

David de Vries has a fine time delivering this comic tribute to life in a 1920s New York luxury hotel. He narrates in a rich tone and lively style that fits this satire of the opulent life of the Hotel Splendide, a slightly fictionalized version of the Ritz, where Bemelmans worked as a waiter. He ably does the necessary French and German accents and captures the demimonde of the hotel, where the world's wealthiest and most indulged folks are catered to by a battalion of servers. The author, who went on to create the famed MADELINE children's books, by turns appreciates and abhors the grand spectacle of life in the hotel. The narrator controls the proceedings, during which the staff often work until dawn, then dine on leftover caviar and champagne. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940159542380
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	10/17/2023
Edition description:	Unabridged

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