"At all levels of class and society, the French seem to hold secrets to finding moments of joy in their daily lives."

I find the subject of happiness fascinating. Finland always seems to top the list in the World Happiness Report, and this year was followed by Denmark, Iceland, Israel (pre-judicial overhaul), Netherlands and Sweden. I am always so curious to learn what it is that makes people happier in these countries than in ours. Beyond well-run public services, low unemployment and low crime rates, what are people in these countries getting that we don't get? How do governments make their inhabitants feel safe, connected and content?

My latest read on the subject of happiness is The French Art of Living Well: Finding Joie de Vivre in the Everyday World by Cathy Yandell. Even though France didn't make it into the top 20 in the World Happiness Report this year, and we know Parisians to be - shall we say - somewhat abrupt at times, I've always thought of the French as having great values. They take their time in preparing, as well as eating gorgeous and delicious meals, even snacks. Yandell tells us that until the pandemic, it was illegal to eat lunch at one's desk at work!

"Whereas in the United States, we often go to a dinner and then to a show, in France the dinner is the show....the message is "Enjoy!"
They take time off from work without qualms -- they know how to relax and enjoy life:

"For the French on the ship, the purpose of the voyage seemed to be the pleasure of the journey and one another's company, while most of us Americans were ticking off the days until we landed."
Yandell discusses some of the quintessential French mannerisms and activities such as faire le bise, the ritual of double or even triple or quadruple cheek-to-cheek air kisses, and their deep appreciation for fashion, sexuality and intellect. The French love their bookstores and publish "60 percent more books per capita than the United States." Their stories tend to have fewer "happy endings" than American novels.

"France has cultivated a public and interactive culture of readers who discuss books over coffee and on park benches....'Do not read as children do, to enjoy themselves, or as the ambitious do, to educate themselves,' wrote Gustav Flaubert. 'No, read to live.'"
Everyone buys their bread and pastries fresh from the local bakery (no Wonder Bread or Hostess Twinkies here!) and the weekly or twice weekly farmer's markets are not only filled with fresh produce and meats, but also act as a social gathering for French villagers.

In an interview, when asked about what she loves best about France, the author answered, "I love the French sense of time – even if their calendars are full, they still have time for a little conversation, 'un petit café,' or a walk." Yandell dives deeply into the writings of Baudelaire, Montaigne and Duras, she explores French history and culture, and warns about some of the faux pas we Americans tend to make while visiting, such as forgetting to say, "Bonjour!" when starting a conversation or asking a question. I loved learning that spa treatments can be covered by French health insurance, and that the French are building many more drinking fountains to discourage people from buying plastic bottles.

Joie de vivre is translated as "the joy of living" and Yandell offers many examples of slowing down, savoring the moment, questioning our priorities and living well that we Americans might consider adopting in our own lives. The French Art of Living Well was a pleasure to read and gave me much to ponder! Thanks #Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book! My review is completely honest.

Hardcover 224 pages, Audiobook 7 hours.

Love this book! Oh, so..... French. I've been obsessed with French culture since I was a kid and this book confirms what I've believed all along. I'm heading back to Paris this autumn for the first time in a few years and I can't wait to soak in the joie de vivre!

"Bread, in other words, equals life." Yeah, I can get behind that. Even as an American who had a less than pleasant experience in Paris, I really enjoyed this book. It highlighted the differences in American and French culture. Like comparing Americans to peaches - soft on the outside and hard on the inside, and French people to coconuts - hard on the outside, soft on the inside. Part of me wishes I would have read this book and/or done more research to understand French culture before my visit so I wouldn't have felt so grumpy about my time there. Well, it was also during historic flooding...but still.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher, St. Martin's Press for giving me and advanced e-book of The French Art of Living Well.

This is an interesting mix of history and the author's personal experiences, and it's clearly both well researched and passionate. It's less a "how to" guide and more illuminating about what makes French life. There's nice touches of humor as well, such as with the author's own gaffes regarding French language and culture. It does get a bit bogged down in the academic side of the history at moments, but it's still enjoyable.

A light entertaining book that will be perfect for someone about to embark on their first (or second or third) trip to France. Yandell merges her personal experiences with more expansive dialogue on French philosophers and writers. More importantly, however, she hits many of the small things- food, football, fun - that mean so much not just to the French but universally. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

In the tradition of Bringing up Bebe and French Toast, Cathy Yandell's The French Art of Living Well is a delightful look at French culture, from literature to cuisine to humor and more...

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my copy of The French Art of Living Well Finding Joie de Vivre in the Everyday World by Cathy Yandell in exchange for an honest review. It published May 23, 2023.
I found this book to be so fun, charming, and informative. I felt like I learned a lot about France and the french culture. I appreciate that this was written from an American’s perspective as it helps unwrap some nuances that an “outsider” might not get.
I found some sections to be hilarious, some to be so engrossing, others to be a little boring. I think this book offers so much for everyone, no matter what your interests are. Food, culture, music. History, art, etc. you’ll find something fun in this!

A book of French culture and how to live well in day-to-day life. Art, history, and the cuisine of France to learn to enjoy life..

Yandell's love of all things French comes from a lifetime living and working in France, first as a young exchange student and later as she pursued an academic degree in Paris. With great appreciation, humor and genuine love she explains why "the French are the way they are". Unlike many books on France which rehash familiar tropes, Yandell celebrates the French impact on arts and letters, philosophy, science and culture made by some of its greatest citizens. She reminds us about the contribution of Montaigne to philosophy and Rousseau's impact on education (who though Swiss wrote in French). Thus, this book serves as a useful guide and reminder about why we should be familiar with their accomplishments. Apart from the more serious examination of "belles lettres" there are also amusing suggestions such as when meeting a person (known or unknown) one should always address them with "Bonjour" (out of politeness) before launching into a conversation. Good advice in any language or culture! And, although I was aware that "double entendre" is an English word and does NOT exist in French it was happily confirmed in one of the many asides on the French language. All in all, if one is looking for a deeper understanding about French culture, The French Art of Living Well serves as a delightful "amuse bouche" for the budding francofile.

I had really high hopes going into this nonfiction work. I was hoping for some new insight into France and French culture, as well as an interesting reading experience about pleasant topics. This was definitely more of the latter, as I didn't really learn much new information. Much of the topics felt pretty random and thrown together without much reason.

Of course any book about French culture (and food!) will be a delight, but this felt like something you could dip in and out of, rather than read through. I wish there had been either more about the author's personal experiences (there were some, but I wasn't able to really connect with her or understand much of her experiences). Much of her personal life was glossed over, but there was just enough that I wanted a lot more from it.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, but it didn't quite scratch the itch I was hoping for!

I found this to be an enjoyable and interesting read. Full of French culture and history. Easily readable. I feel that I am now better prepared for my next trip to France. I wish I had read this before we had received our French exchange student, I think that I would have been much more able to understand some of her quirks!

Rather than a book on French Joie, this is more of a book on French culture. Having lived in France in the 90s, it brought back many memories of daily life in France. I enjoyed this book immensely.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The French Art of Living Well; Finding Joie de Vivre in the Everyday World by Cathy Yandell was not for me. It seemed pretty embarrassing and superior to me. I've lived all over the world and there are much better ways to live than the French way. Especially in Europe. Don't forget they are colonizers! They may protest alright, but they still can't beat Haiti in that department.

This is such a fun little book, it makes me want to travel to France immediately!
I enjoy learning about other cultures and this book provides information about France that is accessible and entertaining.

Honestly this wasn't bad, but I got bored with this one. I started reading this back in February and had to force finish this, this weekend. I think the main issue was that I imagined this would be similar to "My Life in France" that Alex Prud'homme wrote about Julia Child that included not just her day to day life in France, but also food, people, etc. So if that is what you expect, a kind of chronological order to things that explores the author's life in France, not really happening here.

Instead, Yandlell takes a look at what it means to finding joie de vivire. No offense, some of her insights (like finding shoes while in France, but they apparently hurt her feet?) didn't work for me.

Also, I thought the book's flow didn't work that well. I think because it just jumped around a lot. I didn't know who Cathy Yandell was prior to selecting this book, but wish that had been set up a bit better in this book before we plunged right now. The book starts off with her going to France as part of an abroad study, to her being back in France, married, with her kids, and then jumps back and forth.

I honestly thought this book would be similar to The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well, but it's not. Still an enjoyable if solid read.

This is a very romantic view of french culture, but entertaining, and much more accurate than most books on this topic (take it from a french person !).

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC!

This was a fun read that gave equal amounts history lesson as self-help esque advice. It made me take a critical look at how I go through life not enjoying the moment, taking time to do the small things and soak in good company/ good food!

I'm not a self help person so this was a perfect book for me to be adjacent to the topic, but not all the way into that realm. I really enjoyed this!

*****Publishing May 23, 2023*****

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This author writes not only about her experiences living in France, but also highlights the cultural and social differences. This author explains how joie de vivre (joy of living) is in every aspect of French life! A fun read that will transport you to France, give you some insight into French life and history, and will even give you a good laugh!

For me, this book was very relatable as I have experienced French life, having had the opportunity to live in France for 6 years! The author is right, you can never become French no matter how long you live there, but you can certainly embrace joie de vivre in French life! A great book for those who have lived in France, have vacationed or who are inspired to visit France one day!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press, I was provided an ARC of The French Art of Living Well: Finding Joie de Vivre in the Everyday World by Cathy Yandell via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book! Often, when you pick up a title that’s a personal account touching on a country or a culture, it can be a bit textbook-ish, where the author is so concerned with getting the facts just right, they forget to tell a good story.

Yandell does a beautiful job of weaving the subject matter in her personal experiences, with lots of awareness of her own bias, and the societal perception of French culture.

The chapters are well positioned and just varied enough to keep the book interesting and engaging. The author’s personal stories add just the right amount of context to otherwise rather abstract concepts like colloquial terms or the particular style or type of fashion customary on the streets of Paris.

I thoroughly enjoyed this, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a light, airy read on French culture.

If you pick up this book expecting a guide to living more like the French, I would caution that only a few parts of this book touch upon that, not even entire chapters. Instead, the book paints a broad picture about French culture and history, suggesting that certain French traditions or cultural elements are part of this ethos of "living well." While it wasn't what I expected, I nevertheless enjoyed realising there are certain Frenchisms I engage in even subconsciously, from the way I view friendship to the way I debate in a conversation.