When I think of Paris, I think of bread, beautiful people, and nice shoes. In The Sweet Life in Paris, you get all that and more. Here is my review!

Why I chose to read The Sweet Life in Paris:
I’ve been to Paris once and only for a couple days, but I met an old man in a cafe that told me a funny joke I still use today. Are you ready for it? Here goes:
Funny old man: So what do you call someone who speaks 2 languages?
Me: Bilingual (Duh. Good job, Sarah.)
Funny old man: Good! What do you call someone who speaks 3 languages?
Me: (I’m totally on to him; I know this!) Trilingual
Funny old man: Yes! Now, what do you call someone who speaks 1 language?
Me: (Racks brain…) Hmmm, I don’t know. What?
Not so funny old man: American! (as he winks)
I mean, he’s not wrong. The majority of Americans only speak one language and to our own defense, it’s not like our countries share boarders with several other native tongues like they do in Europe. As much as I’m sure a ton of us would love to be fluent in other languages, we simply don’t have as much natural opportunity on a consistent enough basis to make it stick.
What is the book about?
But alas, this book was a fun way to learn about life in Paris as an expat from America. He touches on everything from cheese, wine, and chocolate to dining and queueing etiquette to what never to ask a Parisian.
David Lebovitz is the other of several other books including My Paris Kitchen, so he definitely knows a thing or two about both Paris and good food. You can hear his humor throughout the book and he offers plenty of little known tips like the best hole in the wall restaurants in Paris, or how to make dinner reservations in Paris.
At the end of every short chapter he has a recipe or two, often linking back to something he discussed in that chapter.
Here’s a couple Paris favorites recipes I’ve added to my “Can’t wait to try” list:
Douple-Chocolate Crepes
Dulce de Leche Brownies
Salted Butter Caramel Sauce
Tomato and Sourdough Bread Salad
Spiced Nut Mix
Lemon-Glazed Madeleines
Breton Buckwheat Cake with Fleur de Sel
My review of The Sweet Life in Paris
A quick, easy read packed with lots of great recipes, I would definitely recommend reading this book if you love to travel, have an affinity for Paris or baguettes or chocolate in any form. A solid 3 stars!
For this review and many more, plus what I’m reading now, visit me on GoodReads. Thanks so much for checking out the Collective!
– Sarah
If you enjoyed this review, here are a few others that you might like:
- Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
- Whence Came a Prince by Liz Curtis Higgs
- Run Rose Run by Dolly Parton & James Patterson

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