I’ve long been fascinated by stories that take place in the Middle East and as a bande dessinée fanatic, when I come across a French graphic memoir that tackles the subject, I often can’t resist obtaining a copy. Such was the case last month when I discovered the French-Lebanese author…
Since it’s “Nonfiction November” I thought I’d spend some time reviewing my favorite nonfiction reads from this year. I’d say that on the whole, 2022 has been a better-than-usual year for nonfiction—basing that statement on nothing other than my personal experience. I feel like this year I broke through a…
Each time I visit Paris I think, maybe this time I’ll make it to the Louvre. There are so many things to see and do, however, that I never seem to get there. A quick eyeballing of the swarms in the Louvre’s main courtyard and the throng serpentining in front…
I love to cook and I love French bandes dessinées, so when I learned that the comic author and artist, Christophe Blain, had written a book about one of France’s top chefs, I wanted to check it out. Published by Gallimard in 2011, En cuisine avec Alain Passard is the…
If you’re like me, you enjoy giving books as presents. Lately, I’ve been combing through various book blogs and lists on Goodreads to determine what I should buy for whom this year. In doing so, the thought occurred to me that I should put together my own list of sensational…
A couple of weeks ago, I finished reading Ready Player One on Kindle. I very much enjoyed it and if you’re into science fiction, as well as 70s/80s popular culture, I highly recommend the book. But, that’s not really what this post is about. It so happens, I read a…
For most westerners, the Middle East is a frightening and poorly understood part of the world. It’s impossible to develop an appreciation for the diversity of its people, its rich history, and the range of life experience in the region if you only rely on western news reports. In the…
Whenever I visit France or Quebec, I make it a point to visit as many bookstores as I can squeeze into my packed travel itinerary. Compared to the United States, the brick-and-mortar bookselling business is still thriving in France. The French people are not only buying books, they’re selling their books…
