Tout Sweet: Hanging Up My High Heels for a New Life in France

by Karen Wheeler

Overview

In her mid-thirties, fashion editor Karen has it all: a handsome boyfriend, a fab flat in west London, and an array of gorgeus shoes. But when her boyfriend, Eric, leaves she makes an unexpected decision: to hang up her Manolos and wave good-bye to her glamorous city lifestyle to go it alone in a run-down house in rural Poitou-Charentes, central western France.

Tout Sweet is the perfect read for anyone who dreams of chucking away their BlackBerry in favor of real blackberrying and downshifting to a romantic, alluring locale where new friendships—and new loves—are just some of the treasures to be found amongst life's simple pleasures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781402261190
Publisher:	Sourcebooks
Publication date:	08/01/2011
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	554,123
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Karen Wheeler is a former fashion editor for the Mail on Sunday and current writer for the Financial Times 'How to Spend It' magazine and London's Daily Mail. Her work has appeared in the Evening Standard and You magazines, Sunday Times Style and numerous international publications. Visit Karen at www.toutsweet.net and Twitter @mimipompom1.

Karen Wheeler is a former fashion editor of the Mail on Sunday newspaper. During her career she has interviewed many of fashion's top names including Tom Ford, Karl Lagerfeld, Giorgio Armani and Calvin Klein and has written on a regular basis for many national newspapers and magazines including the Financial Times How To Spend It magazine, the Daily Mail and Sunday Times Style. She is a three times winner of the Jasmine literary award for writing about fragrance.

She is still living happily in the Poitou-Charentes region of south western France, where fortunately most of her neighbours and the expats she has written about are still speaking to her. More information about the author can be found on her blog, www.toutsweet.net, which charts her everyday life in France and at www.karenwheeler.co.uk She also writes a regular column for Living France magazine.

Table of Contents

Note From the Author v

Chapter 1 Which Way to Portsmouth? 1

Chapter 2 The House That Found Me 17

Chapter 3 Miranda 31

Chapter 4 Full Moon 51

Chapter 5 Let My New Life Begin 71

Chapter 6 Camping Out 88

Chapter 7 Moving In 106

Chapter 8 Lonely in La Rochelle 121

Chapter 9 Patisserie and Poetry 127

Chapter 10 Word Games 143

Chapter 11 Miranda's Birthday 155

Chapter 12 Pink Cocktails in Paris 170

Chapter 13 Progress 179

Chapter 14 The Antiques Dealer of Angouleme 191

Chapter 15 The Long, Graceful Good-bye 207

Chapter 16 Summer 228

Chapter 17 Pie Night 239

Chapter 18 A Minx in Anzac 250

Chapter 19 Christmas Day 274

Chapter 20 New Year's Eve 288

Chapter 21 Gone 300

Chapter 22 The Bridge to the Ile de Ré 308

About the Author 313

Editorial Reviews

In this buoyant read, Wheeler describes how she led a glamorous but empty life of "blissful complacency" as a London magazine editor, filled with beautiful parties, countless shoes and dresses, and plans to marry a Frenchman. A year later, at 35, she's without a fiancé or a job and has bought a fixer-upper with no heat or hot water in a remote French village—"a long way from anyone's idea of the charming French house." To recover from the lingering devastation of the breakup, Wheeler decides she needs to begin anew. A pampered city girl, the plucky author adapts surprisingly well to the rural lifestyle. In the absence of a supermarket or decent restaurants for miles, she lives on bread and cheese for months until she has a functioning kitchen, and becomes adept at home cooking, varnishing floors, building a fire, negotiating with countless French workmen, and even beheading a turkey for Christmas dinner. Wheeler offers a charming chronicle of transforming her unloved and neglected maison into a real home and repairing her broken heart in the process. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"I found myself completely drawn into the little world Karen has carved out for herself in France. She writes in an easy, flowing way that I found pleasant to read and once I got started reading I found I really didn't want to put the book down until I finished it." — Peeking Between the Pages

"Even if we can’t all pick up and move to France, her story is inspiring. In addition to being a fun, entertaining read, it’s also a nice reminder that even when life doesn’t go as expected, something good is around the corner." — In Spring it is the Dawn

"If Chick-Lit is your thing, you're going to enjoy Tout Sweet." — Michelle’s Book Blog

"Check out Karen's book and see how she transforms her life from the mad, everyday rush, to find satisfaction in some of life's simpler pleasures." — Eva’s Sanctuary

"A charming chronicle of transforming her unloved and neglected maison into a real home and repairing her broken heart in the process." — Publishers Weekly

"I applaud Karen for chasing her dream." — A Bookworm’s World

"I liked Wheeler’s sharp British wit and enjoyed experiencing life in France from an Englishwoman’s view." — Write Meg

"My hats off to Ms Wheeler for sharing this tale with us. The ups and the downs. The ins and the outs. I loved every freaking one of them." — Seriously Reviewed

"I love this book" — Estella’s Revenge

"A feel-good story that proves there is (satisfying) life after love, that sometimes running away to reinvent oneself can actually work, and that homeownership is not just for the handy and mechanically-inclined." — Apprentice Writer

"If you enjoy fast-paced, witty banter and honest self-revelation, Tout Sweet is a must-read!" — Between the Sheets

"Funny, fashionable and honest Wheeler will keep you reading page by page as she relates her relocating experiences including the renovation of her home, making new (if somewhat older) friends and the never-ending search for Mr. Right." — Stileto Storytime

"A very charming book truly makes you want trade in your city lifestyle for that of the countryside." — Royal Reviews

"An enjoyable read, Tout Sweet is a life lesson on how to transform a life that doesn't satisfy into one that makes each day a new adventure." — Booksie’s Blog

"Tout Sweet is an easy read that is hard to put down." — Book Drunkard

"Tout Sweet is c'est si bon! Add it to your summer reading if you like memoirs with a touch of foreign soil and a dash of self-discovery." — Drey’s Library

"If you are in the mood for a relationship memoir that takes place in a foreign country, this is the book for you." — Books, Movies and Chinese Food

"Karen honestly details the highs and lows of her new life in France." — Palmer’s Picks for Reading

"I felt as though I walked alongside Wheeler as she explored her new run down house in the village or the countryside she so clearly describes throughout the book." — A Well Lit Corner

"But this is far from being a house restoration book, or at least that's only a small part of it. This is also the story of Karen's own restoration...Highly recommended." — Harriet’s Divine BLog

"This is a perfect dreamer's book and aren't we all dreamers of some kind or another?" — Broken Teepee

"Her writing is clear and concise yet descriptive, and crisp." — Luxury Reading

"I loved Karen's straightforward writing and her humor made me chuckle more than once." — Life in the Thumb

"Karen explains the process of this life changing move with a frankness and simplicity which makes one think, "Hey! Maybe I’ll follow suit!" — Dolce Bellezza

"This is a perfect summer read full of drama and all things French!" — Dolce Dolce

"The author wrote with a sensuality for life and for home that made me long to have something like that." — Bibliophilic Book Blog

"Karen had me laughing at times and cheering for her as I read." — The Bookworm

"I would recommend this book to fans of chick lit and fans of all things French." — Book of Secrets

From the Publisher