Reviews
Paris by the Book: one of the most enchanting and uplifting books of the summer! by Liam Callanan
caroltp's review against another edition
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
kerrisbooks13's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars? Maybe more? Not sure yet. This book wasn’t what I thought I’d be. It’s not fast-paced. It’s not sweet. The timeline can be all kinds of confusing. But I still enjoyed it, I still liked it. My heart aches for Leah and her girls. I hated Robert with my entire being. I’m not sure if I was supposed to sympathize with him but I absolutely did not.
msvenner's review against another edition
4.0
If the author's intent is to evoke emotion, then he did so in spades with this book. I hated the husband character. What a self-indulgent jack-ass. The plot evolves around a family where the husband disappears one day. The family end up in Paris looking for him and ended up buying a bookshop. I was intrigued by Leah and her girls and how they faces the challenges meeting them each day. I think they all needed a good therapist. I also really like how Paris was almost another character in the book. Overall, a good audiobook read.
allyg3's review against another edition
Quitting at 62%. I’m sorry to whoever recommended this to me but I was really bored and it just wasn’t right for me. Or at least, it wasn’t the right time.
jkerr85's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
ricefun's review against another edition
5.0
I purchased this book in an airport bookstore when I was desperate to find a physical book after bringing only my I-Pad with Kindle app. to a conference. Big mistake and lesson learned. Having a book for flights and evenings in the hotel room was almost a necessity. I rarely purchase books new because I firmly believe in using libraries, swaps, and supporting local secondhand stores - but desperate times call for a book at any cost - ASAP. After looking around at several bookstores, this book stood out. Because of the splurge I made in purchasing this book, I think it will stay in my memory longer than some other current bestseller novels.
I find that I enjoy reading books about books and/or bookstores. It adds a layer of interest to whatever story the author is writing. This one didn't disappoint. Weaving writing, books, Paris, and family into a mystery narrative was a perfect mix for me. I found that the pace stayed swift and the characters remained interesting throughout the book. There were times I even resisted reading too quickly because I wanted to look forward to the next chapter. I would happily recommend this unpredictable and yet fully predictable book.
I find that I enjoy reading books about books and/or bookstores. It adds a layer of interest to whatever story the author is writing. This one didn't disappoint. Weaving writing, books, Paris, and family into a mystery narrative was a perfect mix for me. I found that the pace stayed swift and the characters remained interesting throughout the book. There were times I even resisted reading too quickly because I wanted to look forward to the next chapter. I would happily recommend this unpredictable and yet fully predictable book.
marzipan120's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
emgusk's review against another edition
2.0
This book dragged, the characters were one-dimensional and the book had many opportunities to simply end, but persisted on and on.
attytheresa's review against another edition
3.0
This one has not been easy for me to rate; I've had a very mixed reaction to both reading it and the book itself. It should be a slam dunk -being mostly set in Paris. But I'm not that easy a reader or reviewer.
Leah and Robert had a real 'meet cute': Leah shoplifted a copy of Lamorisse's classic The Red Balloon from a bookstore and Robert chased after her, having seen her do it. Both are orphans with creative dreams: grad student Leah to make her own film in the style of Lamorrisse's The Red Balloon (he wrote the book and made the film), Robert, having a modest success with a series of children's books, was looking to write a great novel. They marry, have a couple of kids, Leah becomes the main breadwinner parlaying her creativity into speechwriting for the university president. Robert's star as a writer slowly flickers out, even though the family loves and encourages him, tolerating his many 'writeaway' disappearances. Until one day, he disappears and does not return.
The book becomes the story not so much of Robert, who is clearly suffering from mental illness not just writer's block, but of Leah and their daughters Daphne and Ellie and their struggle to survive Robert's disappearance, and Leah's own struggle with guilt. Leah finds plane tickets for Paris and part of a novel by Robert where a family just like theirs goes to Paris and runs a bookstore. Some money appears. Leah decides that Robert wants them following these clues to find him in Paris - a trail of breadcrumbs. So Leah decides to take them all to Paris (which has a great signficance to her and Robert as someplace he always promised to take her). A new life for the family begins in Paris without Robert, but all continue to look for him, sometimes convinced they see him keeping hope alive that they will find Robert, that he is merely 'lost'. It's a story of loss, grief, coping with the unexplained disappeance of a parent/spouse for no reason and the lack of closure. It is the story of searching for the one lost, and coping with guilt that something you said or didn't say or failed to do caused Robert to leave. It's also the story of a beginning and the building a new life, realizing a dream, experiencing life in a foreign city.
The story is told entirely by Leah and you pretty quickly begin to suspect she's an unreliable narrator. I spent some time initially confused and disappointed, for 2 reasons: it turned out to be very different than I expected as in much more serious and psychological, and until I realized that she is an unreliable narrator, Leah herself was confusing me. Once I reconciled those 2 things, I settled in to reading it and enjoying it in large part. Yet, at one point I put it down because I was busy with other things, and I found myself reluctant to pick it back up even though I was 80% into the story. Likely this was because I could see where it was going (although I still was surprised a few pages on when I did finally pick it back up to finish) and I'm not terribly fond of unreliable narrator plots though this one gets pretty high marks from me because you actually know when Leah is presenting unvarnished direct truth.
There was a lot I enjoyed too: the myriad moments describing the essence of Paris or of being an American living in Paris were superb, the weaving in of both Bemelmans' [b:Madeline|475339|Madeline|Ludwig Bemelmans|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1175060644l/475339._SX50_.jpg|2666907] books, adult writings and life, and Lamorrise's [b:The Red Balloon|1451708|The Red Balloon|Albert Lamorisse|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320389634l/1451708._SX50_.jpg|869799], his films, life and other writings, how so many other books and authors wander through, the quirky way the family decides to organize the books in their quirky bookshop - by geography, the little mysteries that appear and are resolved alongside the bigger mystery of Robert and his disappearance. I appreciated the writing and I applaud having an unreliable narrator plot that isn't a thriller or psychological crime fiction.
I ended up giving it 3.5 stars and since GR doesn't allow factional ratings, I brought it down to 3 as I could not give it 4. I will however, consider organizing my massive personal library geographically rather than by title/author/genre - the quirkiness appeals -- if I ever get around to setting it in order (it never was organized after my last move). I'm curious how many different locales I'll manage.
Just want to mention that the author's website provides a wonderful essay about his inspiration for this book and a family visit to Paris while writing it.
Leah and Robert had a real 'meet cute': Leah shoplifted a copy of Lamorisse's classic The Red Balloon from a bookstore and Robert chased after her, having seen her do it. Both are orphans with creative dreams: grad student Leah to make her own film in the style of Lamorrisse's The Red Balloon (he wrote the book and made the film), Robert, having a modest success with a series of children's books, was looking to write a great novel. They marry, have a couple of kids, Leah becomes the main breadwinner parlaying her creativity into speechwriting for the university president. Robert's star as a writer slowly flickers out, even though the family loves and encourages him, tolerating his many 'writeaway' disappearances. Until one day, he disappears and does not return.
The book becomes the story not so much of Robert, who is clearly suffering from mental illness not just writer's block, but of Leah and their daughters Daphne and Ellie and their struggle to survive Robert's disappearance, and Leah's own struggle with guilt. Leah finds plane tickets for Paris and part of a novel by Robert where a family just like theirs goes to Paris and runs a bookstore. Some money appears. Leah decides that Robert wants them following these clues to find him in Paris - a trail of breadcrumbs. So Leah decides to take them all to Paris (which has a great signficance to her and Robert as someplace he always promised to take her). A new life for the family begins in Paris without Robert, but all continue to look for him, sometimes convinced they see him keeping hope alive that they will find Robert, that he is merely 'lost'. It's a story of loss, grief, coping with the unexplained disappeance of a parent/spouse for no reason and the lack of closure. It is the story of searching for the one lost, and coping with guilt that something you said or didn't say or failed to do caused Robert to leave. It's also the story of a beginning and the building a new life, realizing a dream, experiencing life in a foreign city.
The story is told entirely by Leah and you pretty quickly begin to suspect she's an unreliable narrator. I spent some time initially confused and disappointed, for 2 reasons: it turned out to be very different than I expected as in much more serious and psychological, and until I realized that she is an unreliable narrator, Leah herself was confusing me. Once I reconciled those 2 things, I settled in to reading it and enjoying it in large part. Yet, at one point I put it down because I was busy with other things, and I found myself reluctant to pick it back up even though I was 80% into the story. Likely this was because I could see where it was going (although I still was surprised a few pages on when I did finally pick it back up to finish) and I'm not terribly fond of unreliable narrator plots though this one gets pretty high marks from me because you actually know when Leah is presenting unvarnished direct truth.
There was a lot I enjoyed too: the myriad moments describing the essence of Paris or of being an American living in Paris were superb, the weaving in of both Bemelmans' [b:Madeline|475339|Madeline|Ludwig Bemelmans|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1175060644l/475339._SX50_.jpg|2666907] books, adult writings and life, and Lamorrise's [b:The Red Balloon|1451708|The Red Balloon|Albert Lamorisse|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320389634l/1451708._SX50_.jpg|869799], his films, life and other writings, how so many other books and authors wander through, the quirky way the family decides to organize the books in their quirky bookshop - by geography, the little mysteries that appear and are resolved alongside the bigger mystery of Robert and his disappearance. I appreciated the writing and I applaud having an unreliable narrator plot that isn't a thriller or psychological crime fiction.
I ended up giving it 3.5 stars and since GR doesn't allow factional ratings, I brought it down to 3 as I could not give it 4. I will however, consider organizing my massive personal library geographically rather than by title/author/genre - the quirkiness appeals -- if I ever get around to setting it in order (it never was organized after my last move). I'm curious how many different locales I'll manage.
Just want to mention that the author's website provides a wonderful essay about his inspiration for this book and a family visit to Paris while writing it.