| | On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a Small French Town |  | Author: Susan Herrmann Loomis
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty Ltd
Category: Book
Buy New: £12.45
New (2) from £12.45
Avg. Customer Rating:  12 reviews
Media: Paperback
Pages: 352
ISBN: 073227348X
EAN: 9780732273484
ASIN: 073227348X
Publication Date: June 26, 2002
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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Amazon.co.uk Review
For an expat chef to live on a French street named after a recipe is almost beyond belief. Yet On rue Tatin is so inviting the that the book's recipes are only incidental to Susan Loomis's stories about living in France. Setting up house in a foreign country is a genre that draws any reader who relishes the struggles from arm's length. It would be a shame, though, to limit Loomis's audience to Francophiles and food freaks. Many of the vignettes are beautifully crafted. Her story begins when she lands a job as food writer Patricia Wells's assistant and jumps through years and layers of life as she and her architect husband DIY a house--a small 15th century convent--in a village in Normandy. There are problems, as anyone who has crossed the channel in pursuit of a home can attest, put succinctly by a Parisian friend. "You must understand, it's normal," he said. "You've arrived here like a cheveu dans la soupe--a hair in the soup. No-one asked you to come. And, you're American." Through chapters on her brushes with the laws, the priest, the rug salesman and neighbours, there is a sense of honesty in the writing. The French are not all good or all bad, and neither is she. The transition from foreigner to American to Joe and Fiona's (her children) mere, is gradual and poetic in its lack of a defining moment. Food, though, is very important at opening more than one French door. The recipes that accompany each chapter are varied in taste and in difficulty. And anyone thinking of buying a "serious" cooker must read the chapter "La Gaziniere: The Stove". Naturally, she ends the book with a recipe for Tarte Tatin. --Kathleen Buckley
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| Customer Reviews: Read 7 more reviews...
 beautifully done August 18, 2008
When I was in college I always toyed with the idea of living one year abroad as an exchange student in Paris, so when I saw this book I thought it was a divine intervention. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it from start to finish, especially the honest and straightforward approach to way it was done. It gives the readers the sense of actually being there with Susan themselves and living the French dream as well. If you've ever thought of moving somewhere like this writer did, and very successfully in the end I must add, then this is the book for you. It reveals the pitfalls but sweet truimphs that one can get into.
Vicarious pleasure November 23, 2006
As an almost owner of a property in France and a closet gourmand, I enjoyed Ms Loomis' gentle anecdotes of her experiences moving to France. As life cannot be exciting on a daily basis I think she gives realistic insight into daily life and the discoveries she and her family made in their adopted culture. Moving to a foreign country -- especially one with language, customs and tradition differences -- is always an adjustment. It can offer amusment, dismay and, sometimes, one can be rattled by the differences. Of course the differences are judged from one's own cultural point of view. I found her willingness to laugh at herself endearing. Louviers (and its residents) sounds delightful. And the recipes...they are for anyone who is serious about food and willing to take the time to create it. Ms Loomis has intelligently and admirably created a niche for herself based on her areas of expertise: cooking and writing. Well done!
 A measured rule August 15, 2005
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
Dull, dull, dull. Talk about taking an exciting subject and ripping the life out of it. Should be called "An up tight Mrs Bouquet type American moves house" something exciting like that. Why did we have to endure a chapter about her buying stationery for her son to take to school? And the real gastro-action bit about having to find a pencil case to hold a long ruler. Amazing. Don't worry folks she did find one in the end. Incredible. At least we have something to sell at the next school fete....did I tell you about that - they had to find an extra long table to fit all the books on, now there's a subject for a great novel........yawn.
How did France manage before Susan Loomis ? August 14, 2005
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
This is a book without the engaging adaptation and growth of characters which we expect from the genre.By the end of the first chapter Mrs Loomis has mastered the French language and never makes a faux pas. We are treated to descriptions of how she :- - amazes her neighbours with OTT Xmas decorations,
- educates the local grocer on when his produce is past its sell by date,
- instructs the Mayor on suitable occupations for the unemployed. This has to be the worst book of its type I've ever read, sadly I can't award 0 stars.
Self-centred France December 7, 2004
9 out of 13 found this review helpful
The cover is good. Many of the recipes are good. And, really, that is about it! All travel and 're-location' books need a personal touch; some grab you and others don't. Let's face it, its down to taste and choice and appeal. The linking text in this book does little apart from telling the tale of one person's very blinkered expectations of France. The French tend to use very little syrup in their recipes and that is an attribute which this author should have thought of when writing the linking text of this book. It is, so obviously, quite full of platitudes and becomes rather condescending about the people whose country she adopted. I found it to be the worst type of stereotypical, descriptive comment about the country which had welcomed her. It is superficial and adds nothing to the genre. I confess that I ripped out the useful recipes and then sent the rest of the book for recycling. As I suggested above, its all down to taste. And I found this book very hard to swallow!
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