David Downie

A PASSION FOR PARIS by David Downie was, for me, a book best enjoyed in sips, not gulps. Part memoir, part cultural history, part travel writing, it was beautifully composed and engagingly researched, but also very rich content — not a book to be consumed in a single sitting.

My master's work was on feminism and literary Modernism, and I spent considerable time studying the expatriate community in Paris — Gertrude Stein et al. — so I felt well prepared for this text. A PASSION FOR PARIS show more concentrates on Romanticism (a slightly earlier period) and casts a wider net for its dramatis personae. I found the history and the drama fascinating and appreciated the romantic, artistic, and political interconnections Downie develops. I read this book over several weeks, in which period it interacted with various other memoirs, history texts, and novels I was reading. This interaction has encouraged me to learn more about, and read more from, the writers discussed in Downie's book. In this way, the text is inspiring and highly successful.

This is not a book for everybody, however. Even if you know contemporary Paris well, you will need a fairly robust knowledge of French literature, art history, and French history to get the most from this text. (The Key Dates and Key Characters sections in the back matter are valuable for readers who are not familiar with all the events and figures Downie mentions.) My one strong criticism of this book is its lack of a map of the very concentrated area of Paris it discusses. I found this omission odd and sometimes frustrating. The photographs and other visuals that support the text are well selected and illuminating.

In short, serious armchair travellers and broad, deep readers are sure to find A PASSION FOR PARIS rewarding on many levels. show less

Another of my travel preparation reads, this book is an absolute delight, as well as an invaluable guide to the people, places and phenomena of Paris. It’s far more than a guide however. It unlocks the secret soul of Paris in a way that only a true lover of the city could. Downie is certainly that, having lived there with his wife since the 1980s. He has the gift of capturing places that allows you to see them in a new and intriguing light, and to arouse your curiosity so immediately that show more you are compelled to find out more. There are some outstanding chapters on Parisian haunts that lots of people may think they know well, such as the Luxembourg Gardens, the Père Lachaise Cemetery, the old Les Halles area, the Marais and so on. In Downie’s book you’ll be taken on such a lively and vivid tour, complete with history, little known facts and quirky details that, like me, you won’t rest until you can experience it all for yourself. show less

I have never been to Paris but Paris has always been on my mind and David Downie’s latest book, A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light beautifully illustrates why that is so!

I am an ardent student of the Romantic period, both vocationally and avocationally but Downie’s complete emersion into this era is beyond anything I have ever encountered. He adores Paris more than any just about anyone. And his knowledge of its people and history has been gained through show more personal experience and exposure to them in a quite visceral manner. After reading two pages, I knew I could trust him to be authentic and accurate and I was totally enamored with who he is due to the way in which he reveals himself through the telling of the stories of the lives of the key figures from this mystical time in Paris.

One aspect of the book that I find to be helpful, especially for those not well-versed in this era, is an appendix which gives a thumb-nail bio of each main character involved in the Romanticism movement in Paris. As well, the illustrations, photographs and prints scattered throughout the book keeps the reader aware that this is a real place and these are real people whose lived are being explored and exposed!

All in all, I heartily recommend A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light for anyone who has been, is going to or is just curious about Paris and its exciting role in the world of the arts! show less

On the back cover of this book a reviewer is quoted as saying "Downie is the master of educated curiosity" and this sums up what makes this book a fascinating read. If you love books about travel,you'll find plenty in here to give you itchy feet (especially if you're thinking about going to France, as we are). But equally if you're a history lover or of a philosophical bent, there's lots to get you intrigued and pondering all kinds of "life" questions, not the least of which is why do show more pilgrims do it?

Downie and his photographer wife set out on a pilgrimage of sorts, although he describes himself as "a skeptic pilgrim", in that they walk the route defined as "the way of Saint James" (or "El Camino de Santiago de Compostela"). This involves walking from Paris across Burgundy to the Pyrenees and into Spain, which ultimately they do, but in two stages. It is, for Downie, as much an inward as an outward journey and despite the fact that he's beset with numerous physical obstacles (back, knees, eyesight problems), he manages amazingly well. Determination is all is perhaps the lesson to be learnt from this book. His descriptions of Burgundy in particular are lyrical enough to have you digging out the travel guides. show less