Tuesday Intros -- Missoula

Every Tuesday, Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea posts the first paragraph of her current read. Anyone can join in. Go to Diane's website for the image and share the first paragraph of the current book you are reading.
Mostly, I read fiction, but I've always loved Jon Krakauer's gritty journalism-type writing in Into Thin Air and Under the Banner of Heaven, so when I heard about his latest book, Missoula Rape and the

Justice System in a College Town, I figured I should read it. I also have a book idea that I'm playing with that has to do with rape, well a woman who decides to make a difference in the world by eradicating rape, so reading Krakauer's book is like doing research
Here's the intro:

Office Solutions & Services, a Missoula office-products company, didn't have its 2011 Christmas party until January 6, 2012. As a counterpoint to the chilly Montana evening, the staff decorated the place in a Hawaiian motif. Around 9:00 p.m., thirty or forty people -- employees and their families, mostly -- were chatting, playing party games, and sipping beverages from red plastic cups in a room overlooking the parking lot when a shiny Chrysler 300 sedan pulled up and rolled to a stop in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, attracting the attention of the revelers. Two well-dressed men with dour expressions got out of the vehicle and stood beside it. "It was a really nice black car," recalls Kevin Huguet, the owner of Office Solutions. 

 I look forward to seeing what everyone else is reading.

France Book Tours -- France on the Brink

Today, for France Book Tours, my husband Earl is doing a guest blog post. He loves history and he has become a bit of a Francophile thanks to my influence, so this book seemed perfect for him. Here's what he thinks of France on the Brink by Jonathan Fenby.

Author Jonanthan Fenby writes that the problem with the French is “They cling to the past and present, but want a different future.”

After reading Fenby’s On The Brink, it’s clear that even a Frenchman, or anyone intimately acquainted with the Hexagon’s politics and history, would nod in agreement.

“Brink” begins as a political science textbook but it’s soon apparent the author is preparing you to try to understand a “very special place.” 

What is clear is that whether Socialist, Communist or conservative, each political flavor proffered a unique solution to rising debt and  unemployment and  the loss of French culture, whatever trait or tradition was under assault, all crumble in the face of routine strikes and a fickle public quick to call for change, any change

The revolving door of governments through the five republics is dizzying to the reader.

Understand that this is a country where the best minds aspire not to medicine or engineering, but to  the Ecole Nationale d’Administration to be a public administrator (not to be confused with ‘public servant’), only to realize that their learning seldom translates into practical and efficient governance.

The betrayal of its Jewish people in World War II and current resentment of immigrants that has fueled the rising success of the ultra-conservative National Front taints the egalitarian banner of the Revolution

However, it’s clear to the reader that Fenby, who has spent most of his life living in and/or writing about France, loves the place. He is the counselor who holds a mirror to the misbehaving country with a black eye because it is worth saving.

Despite politicians who ruled as a job for life, the Great War that decimated the male population, and an inflated opinion of their role on the global stage, the French are a very special people.

Their Paris is the city of museums and leading vacation destination in the world. Their villages, although many practically depopulated, are the lovely remnants of its agricultural past and post card to the world.

But the French need a new vision, Fenby writes. Its leaders must stand up to protests and street action that takes “precedence over legislative action and diverge from the opinion of a 19th-century politician who said, “There go the people. I must follow them, for I am their leader.”

If you love France, you may pity the French or fear for them after reading this book. If you don’t, it will only reinforce your disdain for their haughty view of themselves.

But just remember, France has been on the brink for a long time, kept from tipping over only by the innate strength of the French people.

 If only they would learn a new lesson. Such a great country deserves that opportunity.

Synopsis from the publisher

France on the Brink was chosen as a New York Times book of the year and hailed by the Wall Street Journal as “a comprehensive and entertaining diagnosis of what ails French society” when the first edition was published at the turn of the century. Since then, the crisis enveloping France has only worsened, and this second edition, completely revamped to cover the developments of the past fifteen years, offers a fresh assessment of where the nation stands. New chapters chart political developments under Presidents Chirac, Sarkozy, and Hollande; the rise of the hard right National Front; and the unrelenting economic woes that have led to unprecedented levels of disillusion and fragmentation. In this new edition, Fenby offers a loving though candid and unvarnished picture of the nation, contrasting its glorious past with current realities.[provided by the publisher]

About the author:

Jonathan Fenby  reported from France for a variety of newspapers, including the Economist, Christian Science Monitor, Times of London, Guardian, and London Observer. Married to a Frenchwoman, he was, to his surprise, made a Chevalier of the French Order of Merit in 1990. He is also the author of acclaimed biographies of Charles de Gaulle and Chiang Kai-shek, among other works. He lives in England.

Follow him on Twitter | Goodreads

If you're in the U.S. or Canada, you can enter to win a print copy of this book. 

Review -- Marie Antoinette's Head

I received this ebook version of the book in return for a fair review.
Who knew that Marie Antoinette's hairdresser played a crucial role in her life?
Author Will Bashor did apparently because he has written a well-researched, thorough book on the life of Léonard, who arrived in Paris from Gascon as a rudimentary hairdresser sure that he was meant for
greatness. If this was fiction, an editor would argue that Léonard catapulted to success too easily. Surely in fiction we would have to make our characters struggle a little harder, but apparently creating outrageous hairstyles on actresses brought Léonard to the attention of the aristocracy. In just a few short steps, he was the hairdresser to the new dauphine, Marie Antoinette.
I'll have to say that the initial pages of information in this book had me a little worried. The cast of historical characters was sooooo long. And, since I'm not a French Revolution buff, the characters did get confusing at some parts. I think my daughter, who reads a lot of historical fiction, would have had an easier time keeping all of the people straight.
The story is entertaining and educational. I really enjoyed seeing sketches of
all the outrageous hairstyles created by Léonard and learning about the court intrigue. My favorite was the one that looked like a ship sculpted into the woman's hair.

The coiffure a la Belle-Poule consisted of a ship sailing on a sea of thick, wavy hair. It was invented after the naval battle in which the frigate La Belle Poule was victorious. The ship itself, with its masts, rigging, and guns, was imitated in miniature in the pouf.

Here's a picture from wikimedia that shows an example:

As I read this book, I found it hard to believe that a mere hairdresser could play such an important role for a queen, but the carefully documented sources definitely support Bashor's story. There were times when the story moved slowly, but overall it was entertaining and informative.
Synopsis by the Author

Marie Antoinette has remained atop the popular cultural landscape for centuries for the daring in style and fashion that she brought to 18th century France. For the better part of the queen’s reign, one man was entrusted with the sole responsibility of ensuring that her coiffure was at its most ostentatious best. Who was this minister of fashion who wielded such tremendous influence over the queen’s affairs? MarieAntoinette’s Head: The Royal Hairdresser, The Queen, and the Revolution charts the rise of Leonard Autié from humble origins as a country barber in the south of France to the inventor of the Pouf and premier hairdresser to Queen Marie-Antoinette.

By unearthing a variety of sources from the 18th and 19th centuries, including memoirs (including Léonard’s own), court documents, and archived periodicals the author, Professor Will Bashor, tells Autié’s mostly unknown story. He chronicles Leonard’s story, the role he played in the life of his most famous client, and the chaotic and history-making world in which he rose to prominence. Besides his proximity to the queen, Leonard also had a most fascinating life filled with sex (he was the only man in a female dominated court), seduction, intrigue, espionage, theft, exile, treason, and possibly, execution. The French press reported that Léonard was convicted of treason and executed in Paris in 1793. However, it was also recorded that Léonard, after receiving a pension from the new King Louis XVIII, died in Paris in March 1820. Granted, Leonard was known as the magician of Marie-Antoinette’s court, but how was it possible that he managed to die twice? 

About the Author

Will Bashor has a doctorate in International Relations from the American Graduate School in Paris,
and he teaches at Franklin University, Columbus, Ohio. His interests have ranged over many fields,
among them the study of international law and business, linguistics, cultural anthropology, and European history.As a member of the Society for French Historical Studies,he attended its annual meeting sponsored by Harvard University in Cambridge in 2013

Dreaming of France -- Into a Paris Quartier

Please join this weekly meme. Grab a copy of the photo above and link back to An Accidental Blog. Share with the rest of us your passion for France. Did you read a good book set in France? See a movie? Take a photo in France? Have an adventure? Eat a fabulous meal or even just a pastry? Or if you're in France now, go ahead and lord it over the rest of us. We can take it.
Maybe we can all satisfy our yearnings for France, until we get there again.
This week I started a new book set in France called Into a Paris Quartier by Diane Johnson. She's the author who wrote Le Divorce and Le Mariage. This book is non fiction though and it explores the history and delights of St. Germain in Paris.
Here's the beginning of one chapter:

One of several Italian queens of France, Catherine de Medicis, had a daughter, the Reine Margot, Queen Marguerite de Valois, later Maguerite de Navarre, who was in some ways the founder of the neighborhood. Margot was not one of the better-known queens of France, but now I think she is one of the most fascinating, and for me the presiding genius of the bookish and worldly quarter St.-Germain-des-Pres began to become, once it was liberated from the stern monks of the abbey of St.-Germain-des-Pres. These latter had been here for a thousand years presiding over peasant festivals like the giant Foire de St.-Germain-des-Pres (a sort of precursor of state fairs and the like, known for pickpockets then as now), settling scholarly disputes, conducting diplomacy, and meting out justice.

I'm more of a fan of novels than this sort of history/travelogue, but I'll give it a try since I love France. I look forward to seeing what the rest of you are dreaming about today.

New Book

It's been a while since I concentrated on writing a new book. I've worked on revising and sporadically contacting agents to sell my current book, but my writing time has been squandered grading papers.
On a run the other morning, I got a new book idea that I'm excited about. I don't want to give it all away, but I will tell you that it's non-fiction, which means I'll get to use my journalism skills. (I have a master's degree in Journalism from American University.)
And the subject of the book, something everyone loves, vacation.
I'm going to need to interview people about their ideal vacations, not just the place but the moment to moment joys of vacation.
Here's a photo from one of my favorite things to do on vacation.

What about you? What do you love about your vacations? And, are you willing to let me interview you for my potential book?