The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris | Edmund White

The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris | Edmund White | The Outcasts

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The Flaneur: A Str...

	The Flaneur: A Stroll Through the Paradoxes of Paris Edmund White Bloomsbury USA, 2008 - 224 pages average customer review:based on 25 reviews view larger image
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Every traveller's dream.......

Edmund White has done it again. He has created the first (in what seems to be a series) guided tour of a great city which focuses on the idiosyncrases, particular flavor, befuddling history and ultimate addicting charm of Paris. This is as close as it gets to walking along side an established scholar and join him in the role of "Flaneur" - one who meanders without prejudice through the backways of a great city, just for the sake of observing and reflecting. There is more French (rather Parisian) history in this little tome than multivolume sets that mold on library shelves. But we find out only the things that interest White (he makes it all so poignant). Sections of the city and the book are devoted to the peculiar Parisian take on monarchism vs royalsim vs republicanism vs socialism. White cleverly introduces anecdotes that at first suggest neighborhood gossip but later are referenced to available writing that documents these strange truths. There is an entertaining history of African Americans in Paris, immigrants of all nationalities as they are today and were in history, a hilariously confused lineage of the royalty of France, and a frightening examination of why AIDS is so rampant in the city. White strolls, cruises, pauses, reflects, delights in the smells and times of day when the light is best in certain areas, and provides a staggering list of the countless museums devoted to every idea imaginable while castigating city design choices and current architecture meant to make the city logical.

The format of this book is very small which means it would fit into the back pocket of any tourist visiting the City of Light who longs for much more insight than pocket guides from tour companies can even suggest. White writes as well in books like this and his bios of Genet, Proust etc as he does in his inimitable novels. This is a little treasure of a book!

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The Outcasts

This book is as much about people who don't fit in as it is about Paris: african-american ex-patriates, jews, gays, poets and artists, Paris has given safe harbor over the decades to those who found drawing a breath elsewhere painful. Paris of course is not without its faults, its political and social incorrectness, but Edmund White describes the city in such a way that you can't help but want to retrace his steps and visit the lesser known streets and museums. Having been to Paris twice but not on nearly such familiar terms, I recommend this tome to the novice or expert francophile. Merci beaucoup pour ce livre, Msr White...

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Slight

This book, the ultimate "insider's guide" to the City of Light from America's finest living French writer, lacks the emotional wallop of White's earlier _Our Paris_. In a sense, this is the writing Edmund White is best at: casually elegant, witty, learned, slight, and generally without purpose.

For most readers, the last quality will probably be most important. As this book makes painfully clear, the life of the "flaneur" (or "city rambler") is notable not for its spontaneity, but for its aimlessless. The author's wanderings are reflected in wandering prose, making this brief book an inordinately taxing read. One wishes that the flaneur would simply arrive -- somewhere, anywhere -- and have done with it.

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Reader as outsider?

White gives some elegantly written historical insights into the monuments of Paris. The compact format of this book makes it a handy companion on a trip to the City of Light. I must admit with some consternation, however, that my attention began to flag as White seemed to focus more and more narrowly on the gay perspective. I couldn't escape the feeling that as we meandered along the Paris streets, there was a conversation taking place in which I was an unwelcome hanger-on. My problem, I guess. This would be a completely delightful book for those more interested in the gay point of view.

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reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, page 5

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