The Sweet Life in Paris

This book made me hungry!! I probably gained a few pounds just dreaming about the food he talks about - the pastries, the cheese, crepes, chocolates. I loved the the everyday anecdotes of the author's life in Paris, becoming assimilated into the culture and nuances of life there. I also learned how to properly slice different kinds of cheeses, which is always good to know.

I loved his chapters on chocolate and coffee- two of my favorite things. It seems that while Paris has amazing chocolate, and I would love to have some delivered to my door in a turquoise bag from Patrick Rogers (I would like to try Arrogance please), it appears that I would hate the coffee. Immensely. I think that was my favorite part in the book- where he discusses show more French coffee, and the many ways it can be ordered, and how you should order it if even in Paris. Since I practically have a coffee drip attached to me, this is information I can use.

I plan on passing this book on to my husband, who actually enjoys cooking and baking, and his favorite is French cooking and baking. Hopefully he will try his hand at some of the recipes provided, such as the financiers, the cinnamon meringue with espresso, and the fromage blanc souffle. And of course the nutella crepes. show less

Holy crap. "Sweet Life"? He certainly makes it sound like there is nothing sweet about living in Paris. Seriously making me reconsider whether I want to go or not. Parisians sound HORRIBLE. Walking down the street sounds HORRIBLE. Shopping sounds HORRIBLE.

The book is redeemed by several great-sounding, repertoire-worthy recipes.

This is a light, breezy book about the joy of food, French culture, and all matters of whimsy that David Lebovitz has observed in his life in Paris and elsewhere. I laughed out loud more than once and smiled all the way through. There's a cozy feel to the book, and David's voice comes through like he's chatting with a friend. Each short chapter is followed by at least one recipe, too. I have a feeling I'd like more of his books.

Pastry chef and cookbook author David Lebovitz has amassed a large following for his Paris/food blog, and these pleasant essays and first rate recipes explain why. Lebovitz‘s ‘The Sweet Life in Paris’ is indeed sweet for the reader.

His subtitle says it all: Delicious Adventures in the World’s Most Glorious - and Perplexing - City. Lebovitz’s take on the Parisian scene is laugh aloud funny and spot on. His willingness to laugh at his own mistakes and his awe at the brassiness of the Parisian character make this book a charmer. His topics are varied - setting up a new apartment, the Parisian attitude toward nudity, what not to say at dinner parties, how to traverse Paris streets and survive, the awesome power of Dulce de Leche show more Brownies….

The reader comes to share his joy at having survived his semi-assimilation into Parisian life and culture. (Remember those fifth grade book reports when you had to come up with a theme for your book? This one would be easy - it wasn’t easy but the author made a place for himself in Paris [of all places!] by being nice and learning when to push back.)

Each essay is followed by a Lebovitz recipe or two. As I read I marked eleven to try right away.

Highly recommended for those who love Paris, those who love food, and those who are willing to laugh aloud. show less

Ma foi! Quel plaignant! I might have given it more stars except for the unrelenting complaints about the surly French. We’ve traveled to France quite often and I haven’t really met as many as he seems to have. Couple that with the incessant commentary on the delicious dentist, cute fishermen, beautiful bakers...why? It’s as off putting as a hetero always commenting on women’s looks. Beauty is skin deep. Appealing certainly, but there’s more to a person than their looks. My own complaints aside, I mostly enjoyed the book, enjoyed reading about Paris and the French quirkiness (when they weren’t being nasty) and the recipes were scrumptious!

The Sweet Life in Paris is the moving-and-starting-over story of Lebovitz’s venture into Parisian life. It’s a story we have heard many times before, of the trials of dealing with French bureaucracy, of figuring out how to get service in French stores, and of trying to fit into a world that secretly scorns everything that is not French. Yes, we have heard this story many times before, but it is a story we will never tire of, a story we want to read again and again, until maybe, one day, we tell the story of our own move to this magical place.

I loved how Lebovitz tells how he realized he was finally un vrai parisien. It was not a big day, but a simple day, the day he dressed up to take out his garbage. How we all want to live in a show more world where everyone dresses up to take out the garbage!

The best part, of course, is David’s take on Paris treats. David is, of course, an expert on pastries, so who better to take us around Paris and share pastry gossip?

An absolutely delicious book, filled with stories about those amazing sweets of Paris. With recipes. show less

If you've ever visited Lebovitz's website, you know that he's an American who has made Paris his home and goes around the city eating the most incredible stuff. Oh, and he's also baker who spent over a decade in the kitchen of Chez Panisse, and has authored a couple ofl cookbooks.

In this one, he gives plenty of recipes, usually his own, but some that were given to him by friends, but the recipes are given at the end of the chapters. The bulk of the writing is about aspects of living in Paris, being an American in Paris and the characteristics of the typical Parisian. Nearly as funny as David Sedaris, Lebovitz describes dealing with the French health care system, attending a language school where he was screamed at for bad pronunciation, show more how to walk down a Paris street without being knocked down, and the impossiblilty of finding both water and a bathroom in the city.
This book contains recipes for chocolate chip cream puffs, a dense almost-flourless chocolate cake, a low-fat carmel apple tart and TWO versions of chocolate mousse. I want to try everything. show less