A Year in Provence

I have decided that even though I don't write the best book reviews in the world, I would like to share on a more regular basis what I have been reading lately. So, here goes...

First published in 1991, A Year in Provence is Peter Mayle's witty look at life in a small Provencal village from an outsider's point of view. It is divided into twelve chapters, each chronicling one month of the year and mainly follows the saga of the narrator's adjustment to life in Provence and the remodeling of his antique stone house; from the burst pipes in January to the Sunday before Christmas when a smartly planned party for the workers and their wives by the narrator's wife finally encourages all of the workers to finish their year-long efforts. There are plenty of stereotypical amusing French villagers thrown in and extraordinary details of the enjoyable cuisine to top off this book candy.

As someone who has been living abroad for the past two and a half years, I particularly enjoyed this book. I found it extremely entertaining and even though French culture and German culture are different in many ways, I could identify the way in which the narrator learned to take the good and bad things about the Provencal lifestyle in stride.

It is a quick, easy, and fun read and I would highly recommend it.