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A Year in Provence

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A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle is a delightful memoir chronicling the author's first year living in the French countryside of Provence. The book follows Mayle and his wife as they purchase an old farmhouse, navigate renovations, interact with quirky neighbors, and immerse themselves in the local culture. Through vivid descriptions of food and wine, humorous anecdotes, and charming portrayals of daily life, Mayle captures the essence of Provence and the challenges and joys of adapting to a new way of living.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style is casual, humorous, and vividly descriptive, particularly focusing on food, making it feel like a friendly storytelling session.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot presents a series of monthly anecdotes from the Mayles' life as expats in Provence, capturing their everyday experiences and cultural adjustments.

Setting:

The setting is the rural Luberon region of Provence, France, vividly depicting village life, local customs, and the beauty of changing seasons.

Pacing:

The pacing is leisurely and reflective of the relaxed lifestyle in Provence, with each chapter corresponding to a month, although descriptive passages may slow the narrative at times.
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Notes:

Peter Mayle is an Englishman who became an expatriate and moved to Provence, France, over a decade ago.
The book 'A Year in Provence' chronicles Mayle's first year in his newly purchased 200-year-old farmhouse.
It was published in Great Britain in 1989 and later in the US in 1990.
Mayle's writing is humorous and filled with cultural observations about life in Provence.
The book is structured chronologically, with each month of the year getting its own chapter focused on the events and experiences of that month.
Mayle often includes charming anecdotes about the colorful local characters he meets.
Food plays a central role in the memoir, with mouth-watering descriptions of various Provencal dishes and culinary experiences.
The author humorously addresses the relaxed pace of life in Provence, including how time is interpreted differently by locals.
He mentions the famous Mistral winds that can disrupt life in the region, showcasing the challenges of rural living.
The book is considered a classic in travel literature and has inspired interest in moving to France for many readers.

From The Publisher:

They had been there often as tourists. They had cherished the dream of someday living all year under the Provencal sun. And suddenly it happened.

Here is the month-by-month account of the charms and frustrations that Peter Mayle and his wife - and their two large dogs - experience their first year in the remote country of the Luberon restoring a two-centuries-old stone farmhouse that they bought on sight. From coping in January with the first mistral, which comes howling down from the Rhone Valley and wreaks havoc with the pipes, to dealing as the months go by with the disarming promises and procrastination of the local masons and plumbers, Peter Mayle delights us with his strategies for survival. He relishes the growing camaraderie with his country neighbors - despite the rich, soupy, often impenetrable patois that threatens to separate them. He makes friends with boar hunters and truffle hunters, a man who eats foxes, and another who bites dentists; he discovers the secrets of handicapping racing goats and of disarming vipers. And he comes to dread the onslaught of tourists who disrupt his tranquillity.

In this often hilarious, seductive book Peter Mayle manages to transport us info all the earthy pleasures of Provencal life and lets us live vicariously in a tempo governed by seasons, not by days. George Lang, who was smitten, suggests: "Get a glass of marc, lean back in your most comfortable chair, and spend a delicious year in Provence.

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About the Author:

Peter Mayle spent fifteen years in the advertising business, first as a copywriter and then as a reluctant executive, before escaping Madison Avenue in 1975 to write books. His work has been translated into seventeen languages, and he has contributed to the London Sunday Times, the Financial Times, and the Independent, as well as Gentlemen's Quarterly and Esquire. A Year in Provence, which has just been published in England, won the British Book Awards "Best Travel Book of the Year." He and his wife live in Provence.

 
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