Far from noisy New York City, I was enjoying an early breakfast by the beach when I guess that I betrayed my French attitude (which i didn't know I had by the way!!!). Sitting just next to me was Adam Gopnik, the author and writer for the New Yorker. And after living for five years in Paris he and his charming wife guessed right away that I was French.
This unexpected meeting brought me back to a time 8 years ago when I met my very American husband. I remember some very animated long discussions we had as we read together Adam Gopnik's book "Paris to the Moon" and discussed the difference of habits and culture between French and Americans. Thanks to Gopnik, my husband came away with a more a better view of the French. For me anyway, it was delightful to read about my country through this American's searching eyes. Indeed, the magazine Le Point wrote, "It is impossible to resist delighting in the nuances of his articles, for the details concerning French culture that one discovers even when one is French oneself."
So, in the grand tradition of the American abroad, Gopnik walked the paths of the Tuileries, enjoyed philosophical discussions at his local bistro, wrote as violet twilight fell on the arrondissements. Of course, as readers of Gopnik's beloved and award-winning "Paris Journals" in The New Yorker know, there was also the matter of raising a child and carrying on with day-to-day, not-so-fabled life. Evenings with French intellectuals preceded middle-of-the-night baby feedings; afternoons were filled with trips to the Musée d'Orsay and pinball games; weekday leftovers were eaten while three-star chefs debated a "culinary crisis."
Back in 2000 from living in Paris with his wife and two kids, Adam Gopnik depicts in an intimate and bittersweet tone his relocation to the city in "Through the Children's Gate: A Home in New York".
Now that I have discovered how "attachant" Adam Gopnik in person, I cannot wait to read more from him...
You can learn more about and order his books on www.amazon.com
