Rating: 
Summary: Really enjoyable...
Review: I loved the descriptions of food and of daily life in a French town. Loomis really makes moving to France sound tempting and not terribly complicated. However, I wondered about their long-term plans, which she didn't discuss in the book: is her family thinking about ever returning to the US? will their children be schooled in the French school system until college or will they go to a bilingual school or international school? I also found it interesting, after a web search, that Loomis has started a cooking school at her home...Overall, I enjoyed this book just as much as "A Year in Provence". The latter is funnier and probably better written, but I preferred On Rue Tatin's focus on cooking and homelife (i.e., what it is like to have a baby in France).
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful read!
Review: I tried as hard as I could to read this book slowly and savor it as one would a good meal but as with most wonderful meals it was over too soon. My husband and I will be going to Paris and Normandy this September and will visit Louviers to see first hand the town, church and shops she so beautifully describes in her book. Even in the cold and dampness of Normandy the warmth she has for her village, its people and the food she lovingly prepares for her family and friends transport you on a mini vacation in your mind where you can certainly envision yourself sharing a meal in her courtyard or kitchen.
Rating:
Summary: truly enjyable read
Review: I truly enjoyed this book...I finished this book in less than a week. Some other reviewers thought the writng wasn't great, I did...it was an easy read, you didn't have to check the dictionary to find the defination for a difficult word, which in the end was a common word used daily. It was like sitting with a friend and she was telling to about her travels. Pick it up for a great read.... of you want something more complex read "Great Expectations" (no pun intened) by Dickens
Rating: 
Summary: She should have stayed at home
Review: I'm afraid I really disliked this book - I felt that the author was very negative about the majority of French people that she met, and seemed to find more to criticise than to praise. It seemed that a lot of the problems she encountered were generated by her own lack of tact and understanding . I wonder why she moved to live in France when she disapproved of so much. (And I didn't find her recipes very authentic - I have never been served the sort of things she cooks in any restaurant in France, thank goodness).
Rating: 
Summary: Should Have Been Better
Review: I'm giving On Rue Tatin four stars because it evokes the mood and feel of rural France. Having spent a lot of time in Normandy and Paris, I recognized many of Loomis's characters and experiences. Loomis clearly has a deep love for France and French culture, and the book was at its best in describing her friendships and experiences in learning more about her adopted home. I wish there had been much more about her friends Edith and Bernard, her fascinating and sometimes frustrating neighbors, and her cultural acclimation.As many reviewers have pointed out, the story of how Loomis and her husband refurbished their _maison bourgeoise_ was very interesting, and of course the recipes seem luscious (though Loomis has a sweet but irritating habit of describing each of her friend's cooking as "the best I've ever had"). After the house was finished, though, the book started getting tedious, and I felt that Loomis was trying to make pages for a publisher. There is an ENTIRE chapter on the process Loomis went through in buying a stove. Even if one is a professional cook who cares deeply about such things, Loomis's prose isn't exciting enough to make the tale interesting. Instead it reads like a shaggy-dog story about appliance shopping. A lot of the book feels like similar filler, with irrelevant detail about Loomis' problems finding school supplies for her son, explaining what a baby shower is to her friends, going on doctors' and dentists' appointments in Paris, and so forth. The domesticity of Loomis' life, filled with friends and children, is a nice contrast to the typical Anglo-Saxon-abroad-drinking-and-eating memoir, but often in Rue Tatin the domestic details overwhelm the story. Still, it's a quick, fun read, and one I wouldn't hesitate to stuff into my suitcase if I were heading for a couple of weeks' holiday in France.
Rating:
Summary: Charmed LIfe
Review: It is hard to resist the charms of this book. Some people may find the prevailing positivity preposterous; I succumbed to Loomis' upbeat perspective. Some may complain that writings about small town life that do not contain irony are pollyannish; I thought the book was uplifting. Some people may complain about the unedited tone of the book; I felt like I was reading a manuscript from diary entries. For readers who enjoy travel writing, culinary explorations, and relocation tales, "On Rue Tatin" will be diverting and pleasant. The book relates Loomis' beginning flirtation with French lifestyles as a student of cooking and continues through her permanent move to the country. She describes her initial connections and friendships, the events surrounding homemaking efforts, her pursuit of cookery ideas, and the neighbors amongst whom she becomes ensconced. Her efforts to create a rewarding life are appealing. The most glaring flaws of the book are related to inadequate (unpresent?) editing. Syntax and continuity problems abound. For me, one of the most jarring difficulties was the author's unexplained shift from vegetarian to hearty carnivore. Nevertheless, many of recipes she presents are wonderful, particularly the Stuffed Tomatoes and the Yogurt Cake. For a foodie and domestic architecture junkie like me, the book was great fun.
Rating:
Summary: Every woman's fantasy
Review: It seems many of the women I meet like to espouse dreams of fixing up some old house in the French countryside and spending all their time cooking and immersing themselves in the culture and marrying some artistic yet responsible husband and having healthy babies in their 40's and treasuring so many friendships with all these mysteriously wonderful people through various minor trials and tribulations. If that's you, this is your book. This woman apparently actually did all that, probably with heavy editing to keep the dream story dreamy. Plus add some homespun Normandie recipes so you can taste something like what you're reading, which is a nice touch. Although I haven't made any of them yet...and expect they won't be the same without those particular ingredients and settings. It's a page turner, so turn to the last recipe, make the Tarte Tatin, and curl up with it while you munch on the Tarte with a little French Vanilla Custard ice cream.
Rating: 
Summary: "Hey everone--look at my beautiful life!"
Review: Lommis does a nice job of describing the details of life in Louviers, providing some pleasant "escapist" leisure reading for Francophiles like myself. The book has some good French country recipes, but overall is a disappointing Peter Mayle derivative that fails to show us anything new or interesting about France. And when Loomis isn't rehashing the now-trite cliches of adjusting to living in France (driving habits; pharmacists; bureaucracy; difficulties in renovating a house; etc. etc.), she's busy convincing us how happy and successful she is. Her self-congratulatory tone quickly became tiresome after the first few chapters--her perfect/beautiful/wonderful/joyous/lovely friends, family, and house were just a little too "Martha Stewart" for me. Yuk!
Rating:
Summary: Almost as good as being there
Review: OK, so the literary world is full of the adventures of intrepid souls who live their lives in foreign countries and then write a book about it. And aren't we grateful for it! Susam Loomis does a lovely job of sharing the trials and tribulations of buying and renovating her home in France, and even her occasional cooking mishaps are enjoyable. What I enjoy about this book is that Susan has a young child, and this offers a slightly different perspective to other books in this genre (Peter Mayle's "A Year in Provence" being the most memorable). As well we have the usual recipes, all sounding delicious, and the day to day amsements and disasters that beset her, all adding up to an enchanting book.
Rating:
Summary: better than most food expatriate tales
Review: On Rue Tatin by Susan Loomis is in the mold of the Peter Mayle and In Tuscany travel/food book but I found it very enjoyable, quite believable, well written and filled with usuable recipes. She tells of her training as a chef and food writer and the familys struggle to turn a run down convent in Normandy into a liveable home and working location for herself, a food writer and her husband, a sculptor. I have tried several recipes and although not detailed--you need to know how to cook a bit--they were excellent.
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