French Lessons: Adventures with Knife, Fork, and Corkscrew

• Paperback - 09 April, 2002 - Vintage
• Usually ships in 24 hours
• By: Peter Mayle
• ISBN: 0375705619

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About this book

Peter Mayle, author of the bestselling A Year in Provence has done it again--but differently. Traveling this time beyond his adopted Provence throughout France, the food and travel writer has produced French Lessons, a celebration of many of that country's gastronomic joys. Whether pursuing La Foire de Fromages, the annual cheese fair at Livarot; a Burgundian marathon offering runners Médoc refreshment; or a village truffle mass that concludes with a heady dégustation of the newly blessed tuber, Mayle takes his readers in hand and shows all. Wide-eyed yet knowing, ever affable but with a touch of mischief, he's an ideal companion, the best possible narrator of his lively food adventures.

Mayle's gastronomic baptism occurs when, as a 19-year-old, he dines for the first time in France. "At the first mouthful of French bread and French butter," he writes, "my taste buds, dormant until then, went into spasm." The paroxysm leads to serious food-and-wine perambulations--and, finally, to chapters including "The Thigh-Taster of Vitel" (a frog-eating fete); "Slow Food" (snail love in Martigny les Bains) and "The Guided Stomach" (an investigation of the Michelin Guide restaurant inspection), among others. Readers are also present for a debate on the secret of the perfect omelet; a search for the best possible chicken in Bourg-en-Bresse; and a visit to a St. Tropez restaurant notable for its scantily clad habitués. Those familiar with Mayle's work, and those yet to discover it, are in for a treat. --Arthur Boehm

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Reviews by readers

Peter Mayle

My son is very into the french language and culture and this book is excellent is filling in gaps that he does not get at school and through french movies and videos. Thank you.

French food par excellence

Peter visits the fetes of food throughout France - escargout, wine, cheese, etc., etc., etc. A plethora of flavors and smells in Mayle's wonderful style.

Ils sont fou, ces Gaulois!

I didn't think I would enjoy this book so I kept putting it off. Boy, was I wrong! What I enjoyed even more than the detailed descriptions of his degustations, were his extremely accurate descriptions of Frenchmen. I studied in French schools throughout my young adulthood and this book brought back so many memories... To top it off, I'm a big cheese lover and cheese plays a big role in this lovely work.

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