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A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle

by Chriss Cornish written on: January 18, 2008 No Comments

This Book Is About

In this witty and warm-hearted account, Peter Mayle tells what it is like to realize a long-cherished dream and actually move into a 200-year old stone farmhouse in the remote country of the Lubéron with his wife and two large dogs. He endures January’s frosty mistral as it comes howling down the Rhône Valley, discovers the secrets of goat racing through the middle of town, and delights in the glorious regional cuisine. A Year in Provence transports us into all the earthy pleasures of Provençal life and lets us live vicariously at a tempo governed by seasons, not by days.

My Thoughts On This Book

Page scan from A Year in Provence
Peter Mayle’s books are great fun. His writing style is engaging and his pacing well done, whether the work is fact of fictional. I discovered A Year in Provence at the North Clairemont Branch Library’s regular book sale. It was such an enjoyable read that I’ve started collecting all his books about life in the Lubéron, as well as his many fiction works. I’ve also bought this book and it’s sequel for my Mom.

A Year in Provence is a year-in-the-life sort of collection of stories/sketches about Mayle and his wife’s move from chilly England to sunny Provence and their adventures living therein. The book is divided into months and full of the sort of stories and amusing characters that only real life can provide. It begins in January, with the Mistral and deciding whether to take money or a share of the wine for their fields’ grape harvest. Like any sensible wine lover, they choose the bottles over the tender.

Peter Mayle is a good story teller. Since any book about life in France can’t help but have a lot of very tasty food moments it’s a good thing I mostly read A Year in Provence during my lunch hour. I think my orders at Subway got a little interesting as a result.