HemGrupperDiskuteraMerTidsandan
Sök igenom hela webbplatsen
Denna webbplats använder kakor för att fungera optimalt, analysera användarbeteende och för att visa reklam (om du inte är inloggad). Genom att använda LibraryThing intygar du att du har läst och förstått våra Regler och integritetspolicy. All användning av denna webbplats lyder under dessa regler.

Resultat från Google Book Search

Klicka på en bild för att gå till Google Book Search.

A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance…
Laddar...

A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light (utgåvan 2015)

av David Downie

MedlemmarRecensionerPopularitetGenomsnittligt betygDiskussioner
7310364,676 (4.14)Ingen/inga
"'A top-notch walking tour of Paris. The author's encyclopedic knowledge of the city and its artists grants him a mystical gift of access: doors left ajar and carriage gates left open foster his search for the city's magical story. Anyone who loves Paris will adore this joyful book. Readers visiting the city are advised to take it with them to discover countless new experiences'--Kirkus Reviews (starred); A unique combination of memoir, history, and travelogue, this is author David Downie's irreverent quest to uncover why Paris is the world's most romantic city--and has been for over 150 years. Abounding in secluded, atmospheric parks, artists' studios, cafes, restaurants and streets little changed since the 1800s, Paris exudes romance. The art and architecture, the cityscape, riverbanks, and the unparalleled quality of daily life are part of the equation. But the city's allure derives equally from hidden sources: querulous inhabitants, a bizarre culture of heroic negativity, and a rich historical past supplying enigmas, pleasures and challenges. Rarely do visitors suspect the glamor and chic and the carefree atmosphere of the City of Light grew from and still feed off the dark fountainheads of riot, rebellion, mayhem and melancholy--and the subversive literature, art and music of the Romantic Age. Weaving together his own with the lives and loves of Victor Hugo, Georges Sand, Charles Baudelaire, Balzac, Nadar and other great Romantics, Downie delights in the city's secular romantic pilgrimage sites asking, Why Paris, not Venice or Rome--the tap root of 'romance'--or Berlin, Vienna and London--where the earliest Romantics built castles-in-the-air and sang odes to nightingales? Read A Passion for Paris : Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light and find out"--… (mer)
Medlem:1Randal
Titel:A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light
Författare:David Downie
Info:St. Martin's Press (2015), Hardcover, 320 pages
Samlingar:Read, Ditt bibliotek, Önskelista, Läser just nu, Ska läsas
Betyg:*****
Taggar:first-reads

Verksinformation

A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light av David Downie

Laddar...

Gå med i LibraryThing för att få reda på om du skulle tycka om den här boken.

Det finns inga diskussioner på LibraryThing om den här boken.

Visa 1-5 av 10 (nästa | visa alla)
A literary ramble through Paris, with emphasis on the leading figures in 19th Century French letters, with a dash of art and artists. This book could also be looked at as a valentine to the City of Light by an American expatriate. But perhaps it is best thought of as a whirling carousel of figures such as Victor Hugo, Honoré de Balzac, Alexandre Dumas, and George Sand -- the figures appear, disappear, and reappear as our author/hero visits places of interest throughout Paris. The leitmotif is supplied by Alphonse Karr (1808-1890): "The more things change, the more they stay the same." I really enjoyed reading this book (and feel inspired to seek out some 19th Century French novels I've yet to read --I've barely scratched the surface of Balzac, par exemple -- and would love to re-visit the city itself). Of course, there are some frustrations: Why so little about art...and even less about music? Why no more about the various churches of Paris? But such complaints are against the book the author did *not* choose to write, and are rather beside the point. I do believe, however, that the book would have benefited from some maps -- either on the endpages or small ones at the beginning of each chapter/section. ( )
  David_of_PA | Jul 14, 2018 |
(Nonfiction, History, Travel, Bibliophilic)

What a lovely book to take if we ever moved to Paris and had time to explore in depth! The geography and history of ‘literary celebrities’, especially of the Grand Epoch, are covered in rich detail.

As a book for a casual reader, it was not so interesting.

I received my ecopy from NetGalley. This did not affect my review.

3½ stars ( )
  ParadisePorch | Feb 8, 2018 |
Recensionen skriven för LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
This book is almost a textbook about Paris, romantic authors and Le Belle Epoch. We tour all over Paris both now and in the 1800 hundreds, visiting the homes and studios of the writers and painters who developed Romanticism as they were then and as they are today. The author wrote columns for various magazines over the years. The columns are rewritten to form a more cohesive whole, a story that jumps from one writer or painter to another, linking them in interesting and surprising ways. ( )
  susanbeamon | Nov 6, 2015 |
Recensionen skriven för LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
A PASSION FOR PARIS by David Downie was, for me, a book best enjoyed in sips, not gulps. Part memoir, part cultural history, part travel writing, it was beautifully composed and engagingly researched, but also very rich content — not a book to be consumed in a single sitting.

My master's work was on feminism and literary Modernism, and I spent considerable time studying the expatriate community in Paris — Gertrude Stein et al. — so I felt well prepared for this text. A PASSION FOR PARIS concentrates on Romanticism (a slightly earlier period) and casts a wider net for its dramatis personae. I found the history and the drama fascinating and appreciated the romantic, artistic, and political interconnections Downie develops. I read this book over several weeks, in which period it interacted with various other memoirs, history texts, and novels I was reading. This interaction has encouraged me to learn more about, and read more from, the writers discussed in Downie's book. In this way, the text is inspiring and highly successful.

This is not a book for everybody, however. Even if you know contemporary Paris well, you will need a fairly robust knowledge of French literature, art history, and French history to get the most from this text. (The Key Dates and Key Characters sections in the back matter are valuable for readers who are not familiar with all the events and figures Downie mentions.) My one strong criticism of this book is its lack of a map of the very concentrated area of Paris it discusses. I found this omission odd and sometimes frustrating. The photographs and other visuals that support the text are well selected and illuminating.

In short, serious armchair travellers and broad, deep readers are sure to find A PASSION FOR PARIS rewarding on many levels. ( )
  laVermeer | Aug 2, 2015 |
Recensionen skriven för LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
When I originally requested the book from a member giveaway, I was under the impression it was a novel. However, upon winning the book and reviewing/reading it, the book is so much more. I have always been fascinated by Paris, and David Downie does such a wonderful job of taking you through the beauty of the past. You can truly see his passion for Paris (excuse the pun), and that takes the book to a brand new level. History books can teach you things, but Downie's way of writing was absolutely breathtaking. ( )
  ellemichele | May 14, 2015 |
Visa 1-5 av 10 (nästa | visa alla)
inga recensioner | lägg till en recension
Du måste logga in för att ändra Allmänna fakta.
Mer hjälp finns på hjälpsidan för Allmänna fakta.
Vedertagen titel
Originaltitel
Alternativa titlar
Första utgivningsdatum
Personer/gestalter
Viktiga platser
Viktiga händelser
Relaterade filmer
Motto
Dedikation
Inledande ord
Citat
Avslutande ord
Särskiljningsnotis
Förlagets redaktörer
På omslaget citeras
Ursprungsspråk
Kanonisk DDC/MDS
Kanonisk LCC

Hänvisningar till detta verk hos externa resurser.

Wikipedia på engelska

Ingen/inga

"'A top-notch walking tour of Paris. The author's encyclopedic knowledge of the city and its artists grants him a mystical gift of access: doors left ajar and carriage gates left open foster his search for the city's magical story. Anyone who loves Paris will adore this joyful book. Readers visiting the city are advised to take it with them to discover countless new experiences'--Kirkus Reviews (starred); A unique combination of memoir, history, and travelogue, this is author David Downie's irreverent quest to uncover why Paris is the world's most romantic city--and has been for over 150 years. Abounding in secluded, atmospheric parks, artists' studios, cafes, restaurants and streets little changed since the 1800s, Paris exudes romance. The art and architecture, the cityscape, riverbanks, and the unparalleled quality of daily life are part of the equation. But the city's allure derives equally from hidden sources: querulous inhabitants, a bizarre culture of heroic negativity, and a rich historical past supplying enigmas, pleasures and challenges. Rarely do visitors suspect the glamor and chic and the carefree atmosphere of the City of Light grew from and still feed off the dark fountainheads of riot, rebellion, mayhem and melancholy--and the subversive literature, art and music of the Romantic Age. Weaving together his own with the lives and loves of Victor Hugo, Georges Sand, Charles Baudelaire, Balzac, Nadar and other great Romantics, Downie delights in the city's secular romantic pilgrimage sites asking, Why Paris, not Venice or Rome--the tap root of 'romance'--or Berlin, Vienna and London--where the earliest Romantics built castles-in-the-air and sang odes to nightingales? Read A Passion for Paris : Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light and find out"--

Inga biblioteksbeskrivningar kunde hittas.

Bokbeskrivning
Haiku-sammanfattning

Pågående diskussioner

Ingen/inga

Populära omslag

Snabblänkar

Betyg

Medelbetyg: (4.14)
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5 1
3 1
3.5 1
4 6
4.5
5 5

Är det här du?

Bli LibraryThing-författare.

 

Om | Kontakt | LibraryThing.com | Sekretess/Villkor | Hjälp/Vanliga frågor | Blogg | Butik | APIs | TinyCat | Efterlämnade bibliotek | Förhandsrecensenter | Allmänna fakta | 204,907,820 böcker! | Topplisten: Alltid synlig