Rating: 
Summary: Babbling of the year award
Review: Another Anglo-American expat to bat in France. And another strikeout. At least Polly Platt was pointed, and her account was based on years in France. Peter Mayle was funny...well, at least his first book was. Try as he might to emulate Mayle, Gopnik is downright boring. His pseudo-intellectual babbling, based on a whopping 5 years in Paris, bounces erratically from topic to insipid topic. His prolix exacerbates the reading effort, and most will probably give up on it by the time they get to his analysis on soccer, which is even more boring than the game itself. Who could possibly find of interest a comparison between the wooden Christmas-tree anchors the French use, and the water-filled steel pots of Americans? Who could possibly care about what a grown man thinks of a harmless televisione show (Barney) for infants? It makes one long to see his reaction when his kid starts listening to AC/DC and watching Walker Texas Ranger. Gopnik's only accurate point concerns the embarrassment with which American tourists shower themselves--hardly a novel observation. Speaking of America, someone needs to remind this east-coast writer that part of the USA exists west of the Hudson. Even if this book were funny, and even if it had a point, it fell too close to Mayle's wake to make a splash. Only readers with great stamina will be able to plow through this compilation of shallow generalizations.
Rating: 
Summary: Paris to the Moon
Review: Having read very positive reviews of this book, and being passionate about Paris, I expected to love it. Instead I found it boring. Certainly Mr. Gopnik writes very well, and there were occasional passages that amused me or rang true of my own experience living in Paris. However, on the whole I found the book to be less about Paris than about Mr. Gopnik's inner world, and that, to me, was self-absorbed rather than compelling.
Rating: 
Summary: A True Portrait of the City of Light
Review: As someone who moved to Paris recently, I can say with absolute certainty that this book accurately portrays the joys and the frustrations of living in Paris. For every American who has stood on a bridge crossing the Seine and pinched themselves, and the next day wanted to throw someone off that same bridge, this book is for you. Even if you have never been to Paris, Mr. Gopnik's pen seems just rose colored enough to show Paris in it's truest light. He mixes today with history--much as Paris does, and it's a lovely recipe that anyone can savor. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Made me long for croissants.
Review: This book is hilarious, erudite and amazingly enjoyable, making it the best piece of travel literature (but it's more *living* literature than travel literature, I think) I've ever read. It's full of insights on French culture -- cuisine, labor unions, childbirth and everything else -- and, more affectingly, thoughts on the bittersweet experience of watching a child grow and change. Gopnik, a New Yorker (the magazine as well as the city) writer known for his wit, chronicles in this book his years of living in Paris with his wife and young son. Sure, they enjoy an enviably plush lifestyle, with nothing to do but...well, observe all day. But the observations are worth the envy. Who else could describe the music (or muzak) inside French department stores so perfectly? Who else could describe the plight of the French garcon in his favorite restaurant with such humor and sadness? Most wonderful, though, is the tender portrait of Gopnik's growing young family. It reads like a love letter to his son and wife. He chronicles Luke's first experiences, and eventual assimilation, in Paris with the eye of a brilliant naturalist, the kind of eye parents always seem to have. Far from being indulgent, this tendency is charming and makes me want to get pregnant and expatriate immediately, just to get a whiff of what Gopnik has experienced. This book reads like a set of essays. Like a set of essays in the New Yorker. I have read some of the preceeding (negative) reviews, and would like to emphasize that if you have never picked up a copy of the New Yorker, if you don't enjoy the New Yorker, etc., that you avoid this book. Bear in mind that Mr. Gopnik is a staff writer for the New Yorker, and he epitomizes their dry, observational, academic reference-laden prose style. If you hate the New Yorker, you will hate this book as well and call it pretentious and stuffy. Hey, you may have a point. But I myself enjoy acerbic and bittersweet wit, with references just obscure enough to make me feel like my liberal arts education is good for something. "Paris to the Moon" is one of the most enjoyable books of last year, and also one of the most intelligent -- a rare combination. Highly and enthusiastically recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Can i give 10 stars?
Review: Loving Paris, sometimes inexplicably, I found this book to be a deeply rewarding and sensuous experience. I finished reading it twenty minutes ago, and now I feel a sense of exhaltation and sadness at the same time. I wanted it to go on and on, and yet I'm joyous that it was there at all. Over the years I will re-read it until the pages are no longer bound. It is in my blood now, like Paris itself.
Rating:
Summary: Bringing The City Of Lights To Life!
Review: "Paris to the Moon" captures all of the charme and mystique one associates with "the city of lights". Adam Gopnik wrote this book with humor and heart; it is obvious when reading his playful anecdotes that he truly loves Paris. -- I have yet to visit this magical metropolis. This fascinating book only deepened my resolve that I must see Paris! Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I hate to trash an author's book, but I am afraid it is very necessary in this case. I bought this book recently, I found it very indulgent, and very highbrow and boring. I was intrigued by the beautiful title in that I love everything about Paris. I then passed the book to my prolific reading girlfriend who struggled to finish the book too. The author talks about himself, his kids and historic arties - rarely did I learn anything about Paris. If you want a good book on Paris, I would recommend "The Insider's Guide to Paris" by Kate Muir. In contrast this book both very informative and filled with humour.
Rating: 
Summary: Made me Laugh Out Loud
Review: I loved this book because it was insightful about "really" living in Paris and it made me laugh. I loved the part about "La Choisir du Roi" and the "Chocolate Chaud." It was very endearing and it made me dream of Paris. The only thing that disturbed me was the absence of Martha until the part about the baby. Wasn't she there all the time? Even though Mr. Gopnik doesn't understand the fine points of soccer I forgive him. Anyone who likes Europe, France, Paris will love this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Rough Read
Review: If you appreciate a sprinkling of French that you're assumed to understand and a ton of self-absorbed New Yorker-style reflections, this book is for you. He makes many excellent observations (earning him a second star), however, I constantly found myself flipping ahead to see if he was going to make a point. I heard the author on NPR and enjoyed every word that he said. He is capable of getting to the point. It's just ashamed that he isn't as well written as he is well spoken. I encourage anyone thinking of purchasing this book to carefully read all the reviews and consider whether this is for you.
Rating:
Summary: Great Writing; Very Perceptive Observations
Review: Mr. Gopnik has a talent for moving from the personal to the universal and back... making the connection between his son's park playing habits and the inevitable French political corruption scandal du jour. As a Canadian living in France, what I appreciate most about this book is not just the great writing but the fact that Mr. Gopnik recognizes the sometimes infuriating things about "the French" (insofar as one can generalize) but loves them and their country (as much as they do) anyway. The only small weakness: it seems at times to be a collection of articles because he repeats himself (about the best walk in Paris, for example) a number of times on a number of things... maybe a bit more cohesive editing would solve this very minor flaw to a very great book.
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