Rating: 
Summary: You, Too, Can Put the Flair in "Savoir-Flair"
Review: Polly Platt's excellent and engaging book, "Savoir-Flair," was of particular use to my wife and myself on a recent trip to Paris. This was the first trans-Atlantic trip for us, and I had last actively used my French 27 years ago, in my sophomore year of high school. I was given Ms. Platt's book for Christmas and dove into it immediately, hoping to get the help I needed for knowing just what to say and do in various circumstances in Paris. We used countless tips from the book--everything from knowing how to hail a LEGITIMATE taxi, to how to greet shopkeepers, to using the Metro, to eating in restaurants--the list goes on and on. My French is, as you can imagine, a bit rusty after 27 years, but with the assurance gained from the book, we were able to successfully navigate through our five days with style and FLAIR. Speaking with the Parisians was easy and fun, even though I had to occasionally ask someone to speak "plus lentement, s'il vous plait." My favorite story from our stay took place on the day we were to leave Paris. We came down to the hotel desk in the morning and asked the young woman on duty (in French) where we might be able to buy some Pokemon cards for our sons. Her pleasant smile grew into a huge grin, as she echoed back "Les cartes Pokemon?" She then delighted in telling us which department stores in the area might carry them. We found the cards in the toy department at one of the stores she had mentioned. When we brought the cards to the cashier in the toy department, we asked if the cards were indeed in French. She asked us if our children understood French, and when we replied no, she looked puzzled...until we explained that some of our children's friends had Pokemon cards from Japan, and that these French Pokemon cards would make our sons very popular indeed. Her laughter told us that she understood. So, many thanks to Polly Platt for this most interesting and extremely helpful book!
Rating: 
Summary: Great concept - fairly well executed
Review: Such a wonderful concept - to provide a study in cultural differences through stories, anecdotes and general helpful travel hints. This is NOT a travel GUIDE but very useful for someone who plans a visit and wants to learn more about the French and their culture than see France. It is equally enjoyable for those who have spent much time in France. I have been to France five times - about 6 months in total - including a foreign exchange living with a French family for a summer, several months working at the French subsidiary of an American company and several vacations with my spouse. For me there was little new information in the book, but it was most enjoyable nonetheless. This is not to say that the book is without fault. My criticisms include: * Sloppy editing and occasionally poor writing. While the book does have decent organization, the details are very choppy. There are several passages that are completely in the wrong section. Much of the content has obviously been cut and pasted from other sources - many of the anecdotes come from emails from friends and readers of her first work. Often no attempt to reword or reformat these has been made. * Far too much of the book is devoted to Paris and Parisians (maybe 75%) * Big gaps in coverage. I.e. in section on restaurants - although there are details about the attire and rank of the wait staff, there is little on what one might expect to see on the menu for different types of restaurants, or How to tackle the task of translating ingredients and preparations. * On occasion, I felt the author crossed the boundary from discussing cultural differences and into stereotypes. Specifically I mean the almost casual listing of oversimplified opinions without sufficient discussion. All in all an enjoyable light read - but it could be so much better!
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as her first, but good enough!
Review: With the opening caveat that I'm only about a third of the way through this book of Polly's and that I'm also a HUGE fan of her first book explaining the wonderful mysteries of the French, I will say that as a frequent visitor to Paris there are some inconsistencies here that I haven't enjoyed. For example, rather than advise some practical cautions about taking the RER/Metro from Charles DeGaulle into the city which is by far the least expensive and fastest way into Paris from the airport, she flat out says DONT take the subway which I find very bad advice. Early on in the book, she encourages people to seek accommodations in the Marais (4th arrondisement) as a less expensive and more vibrant place to stay in Paris (which is the equivalent of a New Yorker encouraging someone to stay in SoHo, absolutely more vibrant but hardly inexpensive) but then goes on not to list not a single hotel in the Marais! Overwhelmingly, there is no one who writes with more down to earth good humor about the French: their culture, their history, their customs, etc. but I think in this volume when she becomes a bit more of a tour guide to Paris, readers would be wise to take certain tourist type information with a grain of salt.
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