THE PROVENCAL TALES [Paperback]

Michael de Larrabeiti (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: St Martins Pr (1989)
• ASIN: B000OSXQN6
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

• This page was created by a seller.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Week In Provence, June 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Provencal Tales (Hardcover)

In 1959, De Larrabeiti (then a young guy out to discover and experience; now, to judge by the book jacket, very much the Renaissance man) accompanied traditional French shepherds on their week-long, annual trek from the winter grazing on Riviera meadows to mountain pastures in the Alpes de Provence. The book is a gorgeous, insightful combo of regional history and traditions, the shepherd's life, the journey itself over an astonishing terrain, De Larrabeiti's physical toughening and mastering of century-old skills... But, most of all, the ancient stories and legends he heard... Night after night around the campfire, each man telling his favorite as a bottle of brandy passed from hand to hand. We're not talking tepid fairy tales here. Rather seiges, irony, betrayal, tragedy, acts of faith, Saracen raids, hand-to-hand combat and fatal love. Last but not least, De Larrabeiti writes really stylish prose. Can't wait to read the rest of his stuff.

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully melancholy, August 7, 2000

By 

Michael Persons (Shrewsbury, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Provencal Tales (Hardcover)

I read it many years ago, can't believe it's listed on Amazon. The stories are all wonderful, but most of them have a sad ending, perhaps due to the harsh nature of life during that era? The story about the coffins floating down the river was particularly heartrending.