Synopsis (Credit: www.amazon.co.uk)

Julian Barnes's long and passionate relationship with France began more than forty years ago. As sceptical observer on family motoring holidays, assistant in a school in Brittany, student of the language and literature, author of Flaubert's Parrot and Cross Channel, he has criss-crossed the country and its culture.

The 18 essays collected here, written over a twenty-year period, attest to his cleareyed appreciation of the Land Without Brussels Sprouts. He ranges widely, from landscape to literature, food to Flaubert, film and song to the Tour de France.

(Bought second-hand at Help the Rural Child Charity Bookshop, Main Road, Retreat.)

I wonder how much time Julian Barnes spend on research when writing his books. Even with this book, a collection of essays, it is no different. Each one of them attests to many hours of painstaking work, just to set the scene. Add to that his ability to tell a story, his sharp wit, his passion for France ... no wonder each essay grabs one's attention, often on a topic I would not have considered of interest before.

Barnes's fascination (I don't think it's too strong a word for it) with Gustave Flaubert — his life and his work — plays a major role once more. As when I was reading Flaubert's Parrot, I realised again that there was much about Madame Bovary that I missed. This time it almost persuaded me to read the book again. Almost.

Given to MarileenS.

Received from Stoepbrak