| | |
The Xenophobe's Guide to the French by Nick Yapp and Michel Syrett A guide to understanding the French that explores the raison d'etre behind
the Gallic facade with humour and style.
| Anything goes | | The French are the most faddish people in the world; They love
ideas, concepts, innovations - playing around with things, like democracy, railway
systems, architecture. It's not the practical end of the road they're interested
in, but the journey, the possibilities, hence the way they drive, as though safe
arrival at their destination was the last thing on their minds. |
| I drink therefore I am | | France is a country that eats, drinks and breathes philosophy. There
is not a farmer, fisherman, waiter, car-worker, shop assistant or housewife who
isn't a closet Diderot or Descartes, a Saint-Simon or a Sartre. |
| Souls of the soil | | Intellectually and spiritually the French still associate themselves
very much with the land, romanticising rural and village life to wild improbabilities.
Inside every Bordeaux technocrat or sophisticated Parisian beats the heart of
a genuine paysan. |
| Dress for power | | French politicians look smart because power itself is chic, attractive,
seductive, and one should dress to look the part. The French electorate would
never allow any government to intervene in their lives if it were shabbily dressed. |
| Although
I do not plan to visit France, I still bought, read, and thoroughly enjoyed this
book. It's always fascinating to learn about the perspective of cultures different
from your own. This book is quick, easy, enjoyable reading. |
| Florida, USA |
| Very,
very, TRUE. | | London, UK |
| This
book is lettuce to my snails. Being a frog myself reading this book comforted
me in my belief that our arrogance was justified. Joke apart it is a jolly good
read and ever so funny. Everyone should read it. |
| Guenin, France |
| Short, aphoristic,
seriously funny, not that xenophobic and almost entirely apt guide, perfect homework
for the fortunate on ferry or plane. | | The Observer |
|
La France comes to life in this tongue-in-cheek pocket guide, a textual romp that
disguises a lot of information about France with an irreverent brush. |
| Southern Cross |
Nationalism
and Identity
Character
Attitudes and Values
Happy Families
Manners
and Behaviour
Leisure and Pleasure
Drinking and Eating
Custom and
Tradition
Sense of Humour
Culture
Systems
Culture
Systems
Business and Commerce
Government
Language | |
| 
| Authors:
Nick Yapp and Michel Syrett |
| Format:
96
pages, pb |
| Published:
01/09/99 |
| Updated:
July 2008 |
| Price:
£4.99 |
| ISBN-13:
978-1906042325 |
Have you read
French for Xenophobe's? |
