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Confessions of a Paris Party Girl

In full compliance with FTC Guidelines,
I received this ebook for free in exchange
for a fair and honest review.
I was in no way compensated for this post
as a reviewer,
and the thoughts are my own.

Confessions of a Paris Party Girl
By Vicki Lesage
Publisher: Createspace
Pub. Date: January 14, 2014
ISBN: 1494701529
Pages: 238
Genre: Memoir/ Humor

Source: Received
from the author for a
virtual book tour on France Book Tours

Goodreads

Purchase the book:
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This book counts for the following Reading Challenges:

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS BOOK

Believe me, I have read my share on expat stories, and even expat stories in Paris. And I can assure you this one tops them all!

This is Vicki’s own story, beginning in Paris with renting an apartment she found on Craigslist! Yes, and it did work, after quite a few hilarious moments on how to find the key, and on how to fit the key in the right door, without looking too much like a burglar to the omnipresent looks of French neighbors…

So the memoir starts right away on a very hilarious note, though I can imagine how nerve racking it must have been in the heat of the moment.

Vicki has the knack of inserting what little differences we have in language and culture to turn them into very to the point episodes, such as how the French count floors of a building, compare to Americans – oh yes, there is a MAJOR difference, and you want to know that one if you even just book a room in a Parisian hotel without elevator, as they are most often…

With her misadventures, with shop keepers, visa agents (I could actually write my chapter for the same version on the American side!), metro jerkers, Vicki lost rather quickly her romantic preconception of Paris, and was changed almost other night from being a tourist into a real resident.

“Bonjour,” she [a visa agent] reluctantly replied. The French observe niceties, even if it kills them.
loc. 1320 on kindle

If you’ve never been in France, you may think she exaggerates, for instance in her pages related to the French work ethos (which sounds like a total oxymoron). Trust me, she does not!

Counting the number of good morning kisses exchanged by all co-workers in the morning, coffee breaks, vacations, and the like, she ends up at a very low average for actual days of work in a French year.

One thing I’m surprised she forgot:
Vicki says:

September is one of the best months to be in France. Fresh energy abound as everyone is relaxed from vacation.
loc. 2513 on my kindle

But this is ALSO fresh energy used for strikes and demonstrations, and in that respect probably the worst month of the year for work and even travel. The French don’t demonstrate in summer, they enjoy their vacation. And for that reason, the government often uses that time to pass new tough laws. So when the French come back from their 4 or more weeks of vacation, they are ready to hit the street!

I thoroughly enjoyed the flow of Vicki’s story. Every line is so alive, funny, and right on target! I have heard Vicki is working on a sequel, and I can’t wait to read it,

VERDICT: Confessions of a Paris Party Girl is a very smart, witty and funny story about what it means to turn from tourist to resident in Paris. Whether you plan your next vacation to the city of lights or consider settling there, you absolutely need to read this very entertaining and apropos memoir.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT

Wine, romance, and French bureaucracy – the ups and downs of an American’s life in Paris. This laugh-out-loud memoir is almost too funny to be true!

Drinking too much bubbly. Meeting sappy Frenchmen who have girlfriends or are creeps or both. Encountering problème after problème with French bureaucracy. When newly-single party girl Vicki moved to Paris, she was hoping to taste wine, stuff her face with croissants, and maybe fall in love.

In her first book, this long-time blogger and semi-professional drinker recounts the ups and downs of her life in Paris. Full of sass, shamefully honest admissions, and situations that seem too absurd to be true, Vicki makes you feel as if you’re stumbling along the cobblestones with her.

Will she find love? Will she learn to consume reasonable amounts of alcohol? Will the French administration ever cut her a break? [provided by the author]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Vicki Lesage is an IT Director by day, writer by night.
And a full-time nerd.
She loves fondue, wine, math, and zombies.
She lives in Paris with her French husband and rambunctious son.

Get in touch:

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