Product Description

The author set out to explore the inner workings of a French restaurant kitchen but ended up stumbling onto a wider, much richer world. Whether uncovering the darker secrets of making foie gras, hearing a chef confess his doubts about the Michelin star system, or absorbing the lore of the land around a farmhouse kitchen table after a boar hunt, Michael Sanders learned that life in Les Arques was anything but sleepy. Through the eyes of the author and his family, the reader enters this world, discovers its still vibrant traditions of food, cooking, and rural living, and comes to know the village's history, sharing along the way an American family's adventures as they find their way in a place that is sometimes lonely, often wondrous, and always fascinating.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #260429 in Books
• Published on: 2004-01-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

KEN HOM
'Extraordinary…Honest, funny and endearing. This is a book for anyone who loves France or wants to travel there'

FRANCE
'A funny, interesting read that takes you close to rural French life'

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
'Sanders' account is so lovely, and Les Arques so sensuous and ripe with magic'

Customer Reviews

An excellent account of life in the Lot
This book is written by an American author who decided he wanted to spend a year living in a French village and write about the village restaurant. A self-proclaimed francophile, Michael Sanders, truly gets emersed in village life and the result is an evocative story of Les Arques - a village in the Lot region of France.

As someone who owns a holiday home in the Lot not far from Les Arques, reading this book in London made me want to jump on the first plane for France. The story is woven around the village restaurant, La Récréation which is a focal point for the restaurant but also details the general life of the village - the council elections, annual fete, foie gras production and much more. If you are visiting the Lot on holiday then this is a must read before you go - it will leave you dripping with anticipation!

Transported Back to the Beautiful Lot Valley
Reading this on a freezing cold and rainy English day transported me back to my favourite area of France. We are fortunate enough to have friends who live in this area and whom we are often invited to visit. Reading about the area, learning about its culture and history, and revisiting many of the restaurants and villages it offers provided a very relaxing read and brought many good memories. We have dined at several of the restaurants mentioned in the book and seeing the French kitchen from behind the scenes was an eye opener. We can't wait to visit La Recreation (one of our friends favourites) on our next visit. Normally I am happy to pass my books around but this is one I am holding on to. Hope Jacques won't be too busy to sign it for me! If you like France and enjoy getting out of the main tourist areas you'll like this book and I wouldn't mind betting you'll be booking a flight to visit it yourself.

Engaging
I took 'From here, you can't see Paris' on vacation and found it a thoughly engaging and interesting read. I would recommend it to anyone who has any interested cuisine or in sharing someone else's year long involvement in the life of a rural French community. Lots of historical references to help understand what happens today and all you ever wanted to know about truffles and foie Gras. I recommend it.