I'm a lucky girl. In 2010, in what must have been a heavenly intervention, I was able to leave my ordinary life, fly across the big ocean, and spend two weeks in amazing France.
I still can't quite believe it happened. And I will never forget that trip.
And how about you, my friend? Are you like I was for so many years, desperately hoping to find a way to go there? Or have you been there, like me, and think every day about going back?
I have the perfect solution for all of us women...everyone who has been once and hopes to go again...everyone who has never been but hopes one day to go...and even those who know in their hearts that they will probably never get to go...and here it is: 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go by Marcia DeSanctis. It is perfect for you to plan, to dream, to scheme about all the best places we women should visit in France. DeSanctis choose all the beautiful places, all the fun places, all the quiet places, all the secret places that we want to go---sometimes places we don't know we want to go.
And even if you never get to put these plans into reality (as I suspect will happen to me), so what? You can still read about these hundred wonderful places, and, for a time, you will be there.
It's much more than a Best of book; I felt while I was reading it like DeSanctis herself was sitting in the room with me, telling me stories about places she had ventured to in France, sharing secrets she was afraid to tell too many people.
Here are some of the wonderful places DeSanctis shares: the lavender route in Provence; make-your-own-perfume in Grasse; the inspiring Marie Curie Museum in Paris; French language immersion classes; a once-in-a-lifetime trip to a 3-star restaurant in France; George Sand's house in Nohant; the beaches of the Battle of Normandy; the lighthouses of Brittany...oh, I could go on and on.
Not only does DeSanctis make great choices, but can she ever write! Here is a little sample from her book:
"Ile Saint-Honorat is a place to pose your own questions and find the silence
in which to resolve them in the dry heat among 17the century olive trees and
gatherings of palm, parasol pines and cypress. This is where to come for a
spiritual retreat (you don't need to be Catholic---you just need to crave some
solitude) and to live from two to six days as the monks do: simply, closely
connected to the land they carefully tend. When I disembark at the island's
tiny harbor, I head past lavender bushes along a densely packed red soil path
that leaves a claylike residue on the soles of my shoes. I ask my friend what
smells so sublime. Eucalyptus, pine, dry wood, tea olive blossoms and vine,
perhaps something sweet that blows in over the waves. The island is blanketed
by the pastel shadows of the Mediterranean sun and supported by a foundation
of secluded coves, chalky cliffs and rugged beaches, which frame the vineyards
and wild vegetation that cover the parts of Saint-Honorat that the remains of
medieval chapels do not...."
You see what I mean, don't you? Yes. Let me give you a minute to take in one more breath of that eucalyptus and pine. Ah. Now go on. Go. Go get this book.
I still can't quite believe it happened. And I will never forget that trip.
And how about you, my friend? Are you like I was for so many years, desperately hoping to find a way to go there? Or have you been there, like me, and think every day about going back?
I have the perfect solution for all of us women...everyone who has been once and hopes to go again...everyone who has never been but hopes one day to go...and even those who know in their hearts that they will probably never get to go...and here it is: 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go by Marcia DeSanctis. It is perfect for you to plan, to dream, to scheme about all the best places we women should visit in France. DeSanctis choose all the beautiful places, all the fun places, all the quiet places, all the secret places that we want to go---sometimes places we don't know we want to go.
And even if you never get to put these plans into reality (as I suspect will happen to me), so what? You can still read about these hundred wonderful places, and, for a time, you will be there.
It's much more than a Best of book; I felt while I was reading it like DeSanctis herself was sitting in the room with me, telling me stories about places she had ventured to in France, sharing secrets she was afraid to tell too many people.
Here are some of the wonderful places DeSanctis shares: the lavender route in Provence; make-your-own-perfume in Grasse; the inspiring Marie Curie Museum in Paris; French language immersion classes; a once-in-a-lifetime trip to a 3-star restaurant in France; George Sand's house in Nohant; the beaches of the Battle of Normandy; the lighthouses of Brittany...oh, I could go on and on.
Not only does DeSanctis make great choices, but can she ever write! Here is a little sample from her book:
"Ile Saint-Honorat is a place to pose your own questions and find the silence
in which to resolve them in the dry heat among 17the century olive trees and
gatherings of palm, parasol pines and cypress. This is where to come for a
spiritual retreat (you don't need to be Catholic---you just need to crave some
solitude) and to live from two to six days as the monks do: simply, closely
connected to the land they carefully tend. When I disembark at the island's
tiny harbor, I head past lavender bushes along a densely packed red soil path
that leaves a claylike residue on the soles of my shoes. I ask my friend what
smells so sublime. Eucalyptus, pine, dry wood, tea olive blossoms and vine,
perhaps something sweet that blows in over the waves. The island is blanketed
by the pastel shadows of the Mediterranean sun and supported by a foundation
of secluded coves, chalky cliffs and rugged beaches, which frame the vineyards
and wild vegetation that cover the parts of Saint-Honorat that the remains of
medieval chapels do not...."
You see what I mean, don't you? Yes. Let me give you a minute to take in one more breath of that eucalyptus and pine. Ah. Now go on. Go. Go get this book.
Author Marcia DeSanctis
on Tour
October 27-November 5, 2014
with
100 Places in France
Every Woman Should Go
Travel Essays
Release date: October 21, 2014
at Travelers’ Tales
380 pages
ISBN: 978-1609520823
Goodreads
***
SYNOPSIS
Told in a series of stylish, original essays, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go is for the serious Francophile, for the woman dreaming of a trip to Paris, and for those who love crisp stories well-told. Like all great travel writing, this volume goes beyond the guidebook and offers insight not only about where to go but why to go there. Combining advice, memoir and meditations on the glories of traveling through France, this book is the must-have in your carry-on when flying to Paris.
Award-winning writer Marcia DeSanctis draws on years of travels and living in France to lead you through vineyards, architectural treasures, fabled gardens and contemplative hikes from Biarritz to Deauville, Antibes to the French Alps. These 100 entries capture art, history, food, fresh air and style and along the way, she tells the stories of fascinating women who changed the country’s destiny. Ride a white horse in the Camargue, find Paris’ hidden museums, try thalassotherapy in St. Malo, and buy raspberries at Nice’s Cour Saleya market. From sexy to literary, spiritual to simply gorgeous, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go is an indispensable companion for the smart and curious traveler to France. [provided by the author]
***
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo credit: Ron Haviv
Marcia DeSanctis is a former television news producer for Barbara Walters, NBC and CBS News.
She has written essays and articles for numerous publications including Vogue, Marie Claire, Town & Country, O the Oprah Magazine, Departures, and The New York Times Magazine.
Her essays have been widely anthologized and she is the recipient of three Lowell Thomas Awards for excellence in travel journalism, as well as a Solas Award for best travel writing.
She holds a degree from Princeton University in Slavic Languages and Literature and a Masters in Foreign Policy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
She has written essays and articles for numerous publications including Vogue, Marie Claire, Town & Country, O the Oprah Magazine, Departures, and The New York Times Magazine.
Her essays have been widely anthologized and she is the recipient of three Lowell Thomas Awards for excellence in travel journalism, as well as a Solas Award for best travel writing.
She holds a degree from Princeton University in Slavic Languages and Literature and a Masters in Foreign Policy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
***
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*Note*: I received a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive any other compensation, and the views expressed in my review are my own opinions.
thanks for capturing so well the greatness of this book. I'm devouring it right now. It is so good, so well-written, and so making me ache to leave for France right now. Probably my best nonfiction of the year!
ReplyDeleteWonderful review! Just as friendly and inviting as the book itself! And I love the passage you chose to quote and highlight. I CAN smell the eucalyptus and pine! DeSanctis is great in writing about her experiences in France through all the senses.
ReplyDeleteYes, she's such a good writer.
Delete