Another volume in the by now vintage Time-Life Great Cities series, beautifully printed and bound, in a large size with lots of visuals and a nice map of the important landmarks. A bit differently, the author has treated here substantially of the life and psychology of the common citizens of this fabulous world capital, and he makes no bones about their less than ideal characteristics: somewhat cantankerous, not very forthcoming, and somewhat suspicious of strangers. But this also gives the visitor or immigrant a handle on what to expect and how to get behind the forbidding shell the Parisians put on. The author seems to be a great food buff, and his descriptions show that this is a meat-eaters' paradise, but somewhat gross for a vegetarian like us in the sub-continent. An added point of interest to me is that the photographer is Raghubir Singh, a fellow- Indian, and the photographs bring out the mood of the urban environment nicely. ( )

As far as coffee table books of Paris go, this is a particularly good one. The pictures are fabulous. More than just your average picture post card shots; they actually show the soul of the city. ( )