How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are: Love, Style, and Bad Habits

by Anne Berest, Audrey Diwan, Caroline De Maigret, Sophie Mas Narrated by Carrington MacDuffie

Overview

From four stunning and accomplished French women-a charming bestseller about how to slip into your inner cool and be a Parisienne.

In short, frisky sections, these Parisian women give you their very original views on style, beauty, culture, attitude and men. The authors-Anne Berest, Audrey Diwan, Caroline de Maigret, and Sophie Mas-unmarried but attached, with children-have been friends for years. Talented bohemian iconoclasts with careers in the worlds of music, film, fashion and publishing, they are untypically frank and outspoken as they debunk the myths about what it means to be a French woman today. Letting you in on their secrets and flaws, they also make fun of their complicated, often contradictory feelings and behavior. They admit to being snobs, a bit self-centered, unpredictable but not unreliable. Bossy and opinionated, they are also tender and romantic.

You will be taken on a first date, to a party, to some favorite haunts in Paris, to the countryside, and to one of their dinners at home with recipes even you could do -- but to be out with them is to be in for some mischief and surprises. They will tell you how to be mysterious and sensual, look natural, make your boyfriend jealous, and how they feel about children, weddings and going to the gym. And they will share their address book in Paris for where to go: At the End of the Night, for A Birthday, for a Smart Date, A Hangover, for Vintage Finds and much more.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

06/16/2014
Four whip-smart, successful French women poke fun at the stereotypes of the “Parisienne” and give genuine beauty and lifestyle tips, recipes, and fashion dos and don’ts. They maintain that a good wardrobe should have a signature piece, plus essentials like ballet flats, a little black blazer, and a classic “but very expensive” T-shirt, but aim for overall stylistic minimalism. As for the don’ts, the authors renounce hair dye, plastic surgery, and glasses, so “you won’t have to acknowledge people you know.” The Parisienne on a first date at a restaurant finds herself on a “complicated path through the jungle of her culinary neuroses.” Her sense of humor is described as “joyous despair”; she is melancholic and contradictory. Other topics include the French woman’s attitudes on romance, infidelity (“don’t treat your lover like a boyfriend”), weddings, friendship, and interior decorating. An “address book” lists essential spots to visit in Paris. De Maigret’s photography and a witty, wise, often tongue-in-cheek delivery puts the reader on a sure path to achieving the French femme’s je ne sais quoi. (Sept.)

From the Publisher

Four whip-smart, successful French women poke fun at the stereotypes of the 'Parisienne' and give genuine beauty and lifestyle tips, recipes, and fashion dos and don’ts ... De Maigret’s photography and a witty, wise, often tongue-in-cheek delivery puts the reader on a sure path to achieving the French femme’s je ne sais quoi.” 
   —Publishers Weekly
 
“You don’t have to be French to be a Parisian.“
   —Karl Lagerfeld
 
“Very, very funny. While reading, I actually felt chicer, wittier and très Parisienne. I was laughing out loud by the end.”
   —Plum Sykes, New York Times bestselling author of author of Bergdorf Blondes and The Debutante Divorcée

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171875435
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/02/2014
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	521,808

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