Currently reading
A London Family, 1870-1900: A Trilogy
The Cellist of Sarajevo
Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher
All the Names
A History of the World in 100 Objects
Down the Garden Path
Virtue Betray'd, Or, Anna Bullen
Year of Wonders
Swallows and Amazons
Illusion in java
Paris Was Yesterday, 1925-1939
I have so loved collections of Mollie Panter-Downes' "Letter from London" column in The New Yorker magazine, that I was inspired to read this collection. It is Janet Flanner's "Letter from Paris" columns from 1925-1939, showcasing pre-WWII literary and artistic (and occasionally political) Parisian life. I can't say that I like her style or sensibility as much as I like Panter-Downes', but it was an enjoyable read. She had a sharp wit and obviously traveled in interesting company. While I did skim some of the columns that referenced people and events I know nothing about, I read with relish her obituaries of some of the leading lights of the 19th century, such as Emile Zola, Brillat-Savarin (whose quotes I've seen often, but whose books I haven't read), Monet, Edith Wharton, and Anatole France. I also enjoyed her notes on Syvia Beach, Gertrude Stein, Josephine Baker, and other literary personalities of the day. I got a few to-read additions out of the book too.