We'll Always Have Paris

January 30, 2006
Perhaps no city has been more lustfully romanticized than Paris, and this cavorting collection of bons mots will do nothing to quell its erotic reputation. Baxter (A Pound of Paper
), a cineast and biographer (of Woody Allen, Steven Spielberg and others), is an Australian in love with a French woman. After moving into her Parisian apartment in 1990, he subsequently becomes her baby's father, her husband and eventually, in his own way, French. He loosely arranges his narrative in themed chapters, lobbing little-known facts, references to favorite films, and gossip about the inglorious past of certain addresses into stories about the affairs of the heart of famous Parisians and expats. He peppers tales of his quotidian life with bemused observations of Gallic quirks and offhanded recommendations of tucked-away shops and obscure cafés, resulting in a book that is part guidebook, part memoir. Some chapters are bawdy and some hilarious, such as "Invaders," about uncouth, ingrate houseguests. Anyone who appreciates Paris and its myths, likes the meandering storytelling of good conversation and enjoys the mildly salacious will relish reading this book, curled up with a glass of full-bodied red and a box of chocolates. Photos.

March 1, 2006
Baxter (A Pound of Paper: Confessions of a Book Addict ), a film historian, biographer, and journalist living as an expatriate in Paris, wends his way between autobiographical insights of life abroad and the gossipy goings-on of a Paris that never was and always will be, blending together fact and fiction to reveal the interesting stories that have crisscrossed the French capital over the years. The entertainment factor reaches its high as the author digs up dirt on Pariss seedier side. He produces long lists of historical whorehouses (les maisons closes ), partouze clubs, bondage shows, and gay bars to create a romantic ideal of a city that dared to be different. Whether revealing the surrealist movements penchant for porn, His Majesty Edward VIIs champagne fetishes, or the clandestine chapels dedicated to repentant pimps and prostitutes, Baxters insights keep the pages turning. The books only weakness is its lack of continuity. As he spins his yarns, Baxter fails to weave together this clever collection of decadent details with his own personal experiences, so that a book of fantastic parts does not in the end form a satisfying whole. For more extensive travel collections.Matthew Loving, Texas A&M International Univ. Lib., Laredo

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2006
Australian-born Baxter moves from Los Angeles to Paris to start a new marriage to a French television newscaster. Searching for a place to live, they find an apartment on the tiny, Seine-bound Ile de la Cite, the veritable heart of Paris, steps from Notre Dame. From there, Baxter leads his readers on a decidedly eccentric tour of Paris. A film critic, Baxter intelligently connects Paris venues to various films, French and American, familiar and obscure. Baxter loves to focus on Paris' erotic history, and he does a particularly stunning job of explicating Josephine Baker's electric effect on the French psyche, attributing to her nude dances a profound restructuring of French attitudes to sexuality. Foodies will revel in Baxter's portrayals of Parisian restaurants' obsession with offal. Baxter's mordant humor is put to good use in his observations on Paris' ubiquitous dogs and their ton-a-day droppings on the capital's chic byways. Baxter also provides lively perspectives on Andre Malraux and on the city's ancient marketplace, Les Halles.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)