French – Page 2 – Shelf Quest

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux by Samantha Vérant (Early Review)

August 13, 2020 Jess Comments 0 Comment

I was so excited to find out that Samantha Vérant was coming out with a first-to-me fiction book. I loved her memoirs, Seven Letters From Paris and How to Make a French Family, and knew that a novel by her about cooking and France would be great. Sophie is a chef in NYC until her life falls apart: she loses her job at a Michelin-starred restaurant and just weeks later her grandmother in France has a stroke. She jumps on…

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Wednesday Whimsy #36

July 22, 2020 Jess Comments 0 Comment

Bonjour and happy Wednesday. Another long, sad break between Wednesday Whimsy posts. I’ve been half-heartedly trying to find French-themed content but most things have been a bust. I’ve tried watching a few French movies on Netflix or Kanopy but haven’t been enjoying them so stop watching. I have been continuing with French lessons though so at least my language skills are (hopefully) evolving. BookParis on Air by Oliver GeeOverall, this is a great Paris memoir read that is funny and…

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French Recipes for My Birthday Week

February 4, 2019 Jess Comments 0 Comment

I like to put a a decent amount of thought into celebrating around my birthday each year. After having a kind of crummy beginning of the year I decided to cook French meals for the week of my birthday. I usually only eat twice a day- an egg and veggie scramble around 11am and then dinner- so I mostly focused on dinners.Here’s what I made: Croque Madame from Tasting Paris. Quiche from Pardon Your French. Swiss Chard Potato Gnocchi from…

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Wednesday Whimsy #22

January 2, 2019 Jess Comments 0 Comment

Happy New Year and happy Wednesday. I hope you enjoyed the holidays and have some good ideas of how you’d like to spend 2019. I spent New Year’s in Whistler, BC with Joe and his parents. It was my first time there and the fact that we don’t take many snowy, wintery trips made this one special. It gave me a good excuse to break out all of my cold-weather gear. On to some links! Book I’ve mentioned Tasting Paris…

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The Lost Carousel of Provence by Juliet Blackwell

December 19, 2018 Jess Comments 0 Comment

I have conflicting feelings about this book. I love the story but not the writing; it feels too neat and tidy to be realistic. The dialogue feels written instead of spoken and real and the foreshadowing feels like a sticker placed over the natural story. There are errors such as “Latine Quartiere” instead of Latin Quartier or Quartier Latin (hopefully this was fixed for the final book as I read an ARC) and having Caty, a photographer, make individual prints…

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Wednesday Whimsy #21

November 7, 2018 Jess Comments 0 Comment

Happy Wednesday, the first one of November. I have a massage scheduled for today so it is an especially happy one. I’m looking at my calendar for the month and I notice that I don’t have anything French on the books. I’ll have to find a new themed book release or a Whole 30-friendly French recipe to try to spice things up a little. Oh! Or I can find a new French movie I haven’t seen. Once I finish binging…

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Ageless Beauty the French Way by Clemence von Mueffling

July 31, 2018 Jess Comments 0 Comment

Ageless Beauty the French Way is not just another French lifestyle book. While I thoroughly enjoy most of those books out there, this one gives me what I actually want: How to care for myself the way the French do in an accessible way to me. After introducing all of these wonderful skin, hair, and body care tips, von Mueffling shares with you places she recommends (mostly in NYC) and in most cases gives suggestions on how to care for…

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9 Ways to Celebrate Bastille Day

July 14, 2018 Jess Comments 0 Comment

I am currently 9 days into Whole30 so I won’t be celebrating this 14 Juillet like I usually do- at a restaurant with other Francophiles, French food, and wine. Even though I’m mostly staying home for the day, I thought I’d share what I’ll be up to and a few other ideas for those of you who don’t want to or can’t go to a Bastille Day fest. Most of these are free and can be done in the comfort…

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Tasting Paris Cookbook (Early Review)

March 20, 2018 Jess Comments 0 Comment

When Clotilde Dusoulier announced that she was coming out with her fifth book I may have lost it a little. In a good way. I have all of her books, love her blog (Chocolate and Zucchini, which is one of the first blogs I ever read), and even hired her for a food tour of Montmartre when we were in Paris in January 2017. She has such a healthful and unique approach to food, using and combining ingredients I never…

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Wednesday Whimsy #17

March 14, 2018 Jess Comments 0 Comment

Bonjour and happy Wednesday. I spent last week recovering from ECCC and going to even more author events. On Monday I went to see Anne Bishop and Patricia Briggs at the University Bookstore and on Wednesday I went to see Zack Davisson, who did a presentation on the supernatural cats of Japan. This week I had a new book club meeting on Monday and tonight I am going to see Leslye Walton (I know her from The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows…

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