Rating: 
Summary: A Moving Memoir by An American At Home in France
Review: ---------------------------------------------------------------"At Home in France" rings true. Ann Barry's touch is unerring. Light. But the tales of her days in France are mysteriously moving. A fine, fine memoir. At the end of "At Home in France" a note "About the author" says all too briefly: "A former editor at The New Yorker and The New York Times, Ann Barry wrote extensively on travel and food. She died in 1996." Like other readers, we wondered what were the circumstances of Ann Barry's death? After searching for several hours, we found the sad answer in the archives of The New York Times in an obituary (Feb 19, 1996) titled "Ann Barry, Editor and Writer, 53." Ann Barry "who pursued a freelance writing career while working as an editor at The New York Times and at The New Yorker" had died of cancer two days earlier at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. "She lived in Brooklyn." Near the end of the obituary, the unnamed writer states that: "Although she wrote on a variety of subjects. Miss Barry, who left The New Yorker in 1994, particularly enjoyed writing about the Dordogne region of southwestern France, where, not coincidentally, she owned a vacation home." It continues: "Although she could only spend two or three weeks there a year, Miss Barry kept such meticulous track of her intense short-term experiences that she turned them into a book, "At Home in France: Tales of an American and Her House Abroad." It is being published by Ballantine next month." The obituary says nothing about a funeral or memorial service for Ann Barry. We have to think that, although she was from St. Louis, lived in Brooklyn and died in Manhattan, her heart lies in France and she is enjoying (as she wrote): "the most beautiful moment Carennac had ever seen. And then we made our way home though the magical night." She is at home in France.
Rating:
Summary: Bittersweet
Review: Ann Barry's book is a great read! I spent this summer day sitting in a chaise lounge reading "At Home in France" from cover to cover. Her conversational style is very appealing, and as a former french language student of many years, I embraced the opportunity to brush up, dictionary at my side. I loved everything about the book from Ann's domestic crises to descriptions of the marketplace to the relationships with her neighbors and other townspeople to the details of mouthwatering menus. I want to bravely enjoy my life, even if alone, as Ann did. Not letting her aloneness stop her. I want to be at home in France. I didn't learn of her death until after reading the book--a bittersweetness revelation. I would love to have read more.
Rating:
Summary: Bittersweet
Review: Ann Barry's book is a great read! I spent this summer day sitting in a chaise lounge reading "At Home in France" from cover to cover. Her conversational style is very appealing, and as a former french language student of many years, I embraced the opportunity to brush up, dictionary at my side. I loved everything about the book from Ann's domestic crises to descriptions of the marketplace to the relationships with her neighbors and other townspeople to the details of mouthwatering menus. I want to bravely enjoy my life, even if alone, as Ann did. Not letting her aloneness stop her. I want to be at home in France. I didn't learn of her death until after reading the book--a bittersweetness revelation. I would love to have read more.
Rating:
Summary: Bittersweet
Review: Ann Barry's book is a great read! I spent this summer day sitting in a chaise lounge reading "At Home in France" from cover to cover. Her conversational style is very appealing, and as a former french language student of many years, I embraced the opportunity to brush up, dictionary at my side. I loved everything about the book from Ann's domestic crises to descriptions of the marketplace to the relationships with her neighbors and other townspeople to the details of mouthwatering menus. I want to bravely enjoy my life, even if alone, as Ann did. Not letting her aloneness stop her. I want to be at home in France. I didn't learn of her death until after reading the book--a bittersweetness revelation. I would love to have read more.
Rating: 
Summary: Falling in love with France
Review: Ann Barry's vignettes about her life in France are a gift to those of us who dream of living a more simple life. Tales of home improvements, neighbours, and regional idiosyncracies are enchanting and triumphant. As Ann discovers the pleasures of owning a home in France, so does the reader. I recommend this book to anyone who loves France, experiencing new cultures, and opening their mind to possibiliites beyond those we are taught. BTW - I understand she died from cancer.
Rating:
Summary: Ann Barry obituary - from the New York Times
Review: Ann Barry, Editor And Writer, 53
(NYT) 245 words
Published: February 19, 1996
Ann Barry, who pursued a freelance writing career while working as an editor at The New York Times and at The New Yorker, died of cancer on Saturday at the Mount Sinai Medical Center. She was 53 and lived in Brooklyn.
Miss Barry, who was born in St. Louis and graduated from St. Louis University, started as an editorial assistant at the The New Yorker in 1967 before moving down the street to The Times in 1975.
While designing and editing the Sunday Arts and Leisure Guide, editing art and dance reviews and designing the daily cultural pages, she began contributing articles to The Times, a career she continued and expanded after she returned to The New Yorker in 1990 as managing editor of the Goings On About Town section.
Although she wrote on a variety of subjects, Miss Barry, who left The New Yorker in 1994, particularly enjoyed writing about the Dordogne region of southwestern France, where, not coincidentally, she owned a vacation home.
Although she could spend only two or three weeks there a year, Miss Barry kept such meticulous track of her intense short-term experiences that she turned them into a book, "At Home in France: Tales of an American and Her House Abroad." It is being published by Ballantine next month.
She is survived by a brother, Gene, of Palm Harbor, Fla.
Rating:
Summary: Required reading for all students of French culture
Review: As a former teacher of high school French students, I have found that we focus too much on conjugations and not enough on understanding the psyches of the French. This sweet, beautifully told story shows a side of Ann Barry's French neighbors that we might not have discovered had she not had the sensitivity to go beyond her own cultural boundaries and try to meet her newfound friends halfway. For those of us who have heard so often how hard it is to penetrate the inner sanctum of other cultures, this book is refreshing encouragement to continue our quest to persuade Americans that we can grow to be bigger and better people by reaching beyond our borders.
Rating:
Summary: Lovely, Yet Bittersweet Memoir
Review: As travel memoirs go, this was decidely a disappointment. Ann Barry never seemed to really BE "At Home in France". Perhaps she was a too-serious, distant and compartmentalized personality for me to enjoy on a personal level, as she often seems humorless and ambivalent, despite her declarations of affection for her house in rural France. In fact, her affection for her house seems greater than that for her neighbors. Oddly, though, she never changes any of the previous owners' furnishings or interior and exterior aspects of the house (or is not even interested enough herself to mention it if she did). After 12 years of 4-weeks-per-year visits, she was only beginning to make the effort of befriending her community, and seems mostly to be "on vacation" rather than "at home." There is no conclusion to the story, as she died before the book was published (evidently an untimely middle-age death that is not explained to the reader). The few pleasant passages are dulled by a preponderance of lukewarm or half-finished vignettes. Unsatisfying.
Rating: 
Summary: Better Title: "On Vacation in France"
Review: As travel memoirs go, this was decidely a disappointment. Ann Barry never seemed to really BE "At Home in France". Perhaps she was a too-serious, distant and compartmentalized personality for me to enjoy on a personal level, as she often seems humorless and ambivalent, despite her declarations of affection for her house in rural France. In fact, her affection for her house seems greater than that for her neighbors. Oddly, though, she never changes any of the previous owners' furnishings or interior and exterior aspects of the house (or is not even interested enough herself to mention it if she did). After 12 years of 4-weeks-per-year visits, she was only beginning to make the effort of befriending her community, and seems mostly to be "on vacation" rather than "at home." There is no conclusion to the story, as she died before the book was published (evidently an untimely middle-age death that is not explained to the reader). The few pleasant passages are dulled by a preponderance of lukewarm or half-finished vignettes. Unsatisfying.
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinaire!
Review: Having begun my reading of France with Peter Mayle's 5-star rated "A Year in Provence" I was dismayed that I could not put a finger on what it was about his book that made me not care for it. After reading "At Home in France", I now know what it was lacking - HEART! This book by Ann Barry is written with feeling. She starts the book by actually letting us know about her inner self and family background, so we can see her perspective when we read the book. This book hooked me from the beginning with Barry's charming descriptions of her home and her neighbors. It lets us get a glimpse of what living in this area of France is really like, and I am glad to say that it warmed me to the French, who I had previously understood to dislike Americans. The book is filled with travel anecdotes, including stays at local castles. Also included are luscious descriptions of French food/dining (WARNING: this book will make you very hungry!). The main part of the book I enjoyed was the domestic details - housekeeping and cooking with a half refrigerator and two-burner stove. This book is also written with a great sense of humor. The funniest part of the book is about bats. (Sorry, you'll have to read the book to find out what I mean!)
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