Product Description

Sam and Bud were ordinary first-time homebuyers in their early thirties. Their intention, in moving to France, was to create a simple life in a place where they could spend time with their children. The home they actually bought was a 17th century chateau in the Loire valley with over thirty rooms. Chateau de la Buronniere had been the seat of noble families as far back as 1507. With only modest savings, Sam and Bud launched the exciting project of restoring this extraordinary building to its former glory. Over several years they renovated 10,000 square feet of house, installed countless bathrooms, painted 156 windows, put the 40-acre park and gardens into some semblance of order and started a bed and breakfast against resistance from the locals. Their hardwork prevailed; their chateau quadrupled in value. The things we dream do not always fit nicely with the realities of everyday life. This is an insightful glimpse of what it truly means to leave everything behind to pursue a dream.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #36652 in Books
• Published on: 2007-08-20
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

BritMag, September 2007
"the perfect read for anyone considering a... home makeover project and for all... who dream in a life in France."

Living Abroad Magazine, March 08
'An amazing journey'

Living France Magazine, January 2008
'It's the perfect read... for all of us who dream of a life in France'

Customer Reviews

A different insight into living in France
I thoroughly enjoyed reading A Chateau of One's Own. The book takes the usual house renovation project to another level with the restoration of a chateau. As well as passing on everyday experiences living and setting up a bed and breakfast business in France.

Altogether I found the book a humorous and thoughtful read about the ups and downs of buying a dream home and of changing a life style, and I would recommend this book to anyone wanting a different insight into living in France.

Charming and Inspiring.
My wife and I recently read "A Chateau of One's Own." We LOVED it. We have passed it on to our grown children and have told all of our friends about it's simple magic.

It is charmingly written. While reading, one really gets the feeling of how amazing it must be to take on a such a project and live in a grand country house. We did something similar (many years ago and on a much smaller scale) -- we only wish we had written about so passionately.


We would love to hear the wife's story too, told from her point of view!


So - this year's birthday/Christmas presents to friends will be a copy of this book.

A charming inspiration!

Honest and Extremely Funny!
I read this book and thought it was great! The author is a natural! The storytelling was honest, thoughtful, insightful and extremely funny.


There is a bit of everything -- a compelling storyline, a little history of the Loire Valley, history of France, architecture, chateaux life. A very full meal of a book.


The author's conversational style works really well in the written form...his irreverent sense of humor really comes through in the book.


Congratulations...I'm sure this is just the beginning of many books to come. And I can't wait for the next book to see what happens!