Customer Reviews

The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Edmund White has done it again. He has created the first (in what seems to be a series) guided tour of a great city which focuses on the idiosyncrases, particular flavor, befuddling history and ultimate addicting charm of Paris. This is as close as it gets to walking along side an established scholar and join him in the role of "Flaneur" - one who meanders without prejudice through the backways of a great city, just for the sake of observing and reflecting. There is more French (rather Parisian) history in this little tome than multivolume sets that mold on library shelves. But we find out only the things that interest White (he makes it all so poignant). Sections of the city and the book are devoted to the peculiar Parisian take on monarchism vs royalsim vs republicanism vs socialism. White cleverly introduces anecdotes that at first suggest neighborhood gossip but later are referenced to available writing that documents these strange truths. There is an entertaining history of African Americans in Paris, immigrants of all nationalities as they are today and were in history, a hilariously confused lineage of the royalty of France, and a frightening examination of why AIDS is so rampant in the city. White strolls, cruises, pauses, reflects, delights in the smells and times of day when the light is best in certain areas, and provides a staggering list of the countless museums devoted to every idea imaginable while castigating city design choices and current architecture meant to make the city logical.

The format of this book is very small which means it would fit into the back pocket of any tourist visiting the City of Light who longs for much more insight than pocket guides from tour companies can even suggest. White writes as well in books like this and his bios of Genet, Proust etc as he does in his inimitable novels. This is a little treasure of a book!

I hope that the people at Bloomsbury Press continue to employ wise and opinionated writers who can tell us about their favorite cities and the personal secrets to be found in them. This first, by Edmund White, is a winner.

White takes us into HIS Paris, a city he has lived in for many, many years. As an American, the city will naturally feel different to him than it might to a native. White's writing is, as always, graceful and beautiful. His assessment of Colette, his desription of "nationalism" among the Jews of Paris, and, certainly, his thoughts on Homosexuality and specifically HIV in this city are important and fascinating. I also especially enjoyed the short appendix on "further reading."

It surprised me that a few of the other reviewers were taken aback that White would spend so much of his time on gay Parisian life. This has always been a subject for White...in his novels, his memoirs and in his non-fiction works. Hire Julia Child to write about Paris and we're bound to get a book filled with thoughts on food. By the way, a "flaneur," we are told, is a person who walks, strolls for the purpose of walking or strolling...not with any "ulterior" motive. RECOMMENDED

White gives some elegantly written historical insights into the monuments of Paris. The compact format of this book makes it a handy companion on a trip to the City of Light. I must admit with some consternation, however, that my attention began to flag as White seemed to focus more and more narrowly on the gay perspective. I couldn't escape the feeling that as we meandered along the Paris streets, there was a conversation taking place in which I was an unwelcome hanger-on. My problem, I guess. This would be a completely delightful book for those more interested in the gay point of view.

This book is as much about people who don't fit in as it is about Paris: african-american ex-patriates, jews, gays, poets and artists, Paris has given safe harbor over the decades to those who found drawing a breath elsewhere painful. Paris of course is not without its faults, its political and social incorrectness, but Edmund White describes the city in such a way that you can't help but want to retrace his steps and visit the lesser known streets and museums. Having been to Paris twice but not on nearly such familiar terms, I recommend this tome to the novice or expert francophile. Merci beaucoup pour ce livre, Msr White...

Flaneur is a French term for an aimless urban stroller. One in search of experience, not knowledge. Paris, says Edmund White, is ideal for this indulgence. Unlike sprawling New York, for example, almost every Paris street alluringly turns seamlessly into the next. I found one of the best strolls described led to tha Marais, a district untouched by Baron Haussman's reconstruction of Paris under Napleon 3rd in 1869, which is the Paris we know today. Young Parisiens rediscovered and moved into the houses with old fashioned fireplaces and timber beamed ceilings, causing prices to rise The old Jewish ghetto is here, surrounded by neighboring chic boutiques.
Strolling east of the Champ d'Elysee is the Parc Monceau where Colette, San Saens and Proust once lived. One of the old mansions houses an extensive art collection of antique furniture, rugs, china which White says is only slightly less impressive than that of the Frick Museum in New York. Few tourists know this
. White unhurridely lingers at sites overlooked by most tourists, recalling priceless memories of Parisiens from Monarchists to literary figures.
Today. he notes Arab, African and Asian immigrants nearly dominate the city's tastes and sounds. Opiniated, yet free of prejudice, White eyes paradoxes of Paris. A section on Parisian homosexuals illustrates this. A large bibliography covers every aspect of French life. This book is witty, honest, thoroughly engaging.A unique guide for visitors to Paris,

Edmund White gives a very different "travel book" in FLANEUR: A STROLL THROUGH THE PARADOXES OF PARIS. If you don't delight in books that compare prices of hotels and restaurants or books in which the author traces the difficulty of restoring and furbishing a fabulous villa all while beguiling and amusing the locals then White's book will offer you a refreshing alternative.

Sixteen-year resident, White, offers a view of Paris that is at once personal and historical. It is more accurately described as a memoir of Paris rather than a standard travel book. One feels as though a friend is offering a leisurely tour of the city showing you his favorite places and telling stories offering insight and historical tidbits not dragging you through a checklist as an impersonal tourist. The changes in neighborhoods and the histories he describes particularly those of expatriate Americans in Paris are all insightful. White's tone is erudite and conversational without being tedious or condescending. The term flaneur is key in the title. The pace of the book is strolling but always interesting. It seems to have no direction but the end result is both illuminating and satisfying. Most remarkably it offers an enjoyable read whether one is immediately traveling to Paris or armchair traveling or whether one is living in a villa in Europe or a small apartment in the States.

Of course this isn't really about cruising. If it were it would be awfully boring, and this book is anything but boring. Even so, there is nothing quite so pleasurable as a stroll down almost any street in the French capital. Edmund white, who lived there for a long time, offers a distillation of his experience in this delightful little book. Reading it is almost as good as being there. Second best. Whie writes elegantly and intelligently. The part I most enjoyed, and from which I learned most, is about the Camondo Museum and the tragedy of the family that built and owned it. After reading this book I went to visit it and it turned out to be all White says it is. Delightful. But the book contains other wonderful descriptions of people and places as well. Highly recommended.

This book is a meandering discussion of both the ideal of Paris and its geography. White has lived for over 15 years in Paris, and he provides an introduction of sorts to the city for Americans with an intellectual bent. The book can't really serve as a guide book or book with city walks, since there are no directions or street names, and certainly no itineraries. As White explains, a flaneur is someone who just wanders around, allowing himself to be drawn in the direction of anything of interest. Thus, White strolls with us through several Paris districts, commenting at length on artists or authors who lived there. Along the way, we find entire chapters on African Americans in Paris, gays in Paris, and Jews in Paris. The book assumes a certain familiarity with both the city itself and Parisian people. If you're a complete newcomer, you may find parts of the book somewhat confusing. But if you're an American who has spent at least several weeks in the city, you may find this book to be a delightful diversion.

The layers of history White unearths in his wanderings are fasinating. Observations on Colette and Josephine Baker show a real understanding of the richness of culture. But his musing on modern Paris bring to light a truth uncompromised by a romantic view of the City of Lights. The fact that the current Paris art scene lacks star quality, or that Paris is just as damp as London, shows that although White loves his topic, he's not above sharing some of it's meager qualities as well. This is a lovely book, even in it's design, and would be a nice edition to a coffeetable, inviting guests to thumb through ramdom snatchings of Paris life.

If you're looking to escape into the city of Paris, forget this book. The author never quite manages to leave himself out of the picture for long and fails, unlike the best essayists, to tease larger truths from small observations. Why he needed to leap from a discussion of small museums to a lengthy discourse on his homosexuality is a mystery. The book disappointed.