Buche de Noel

With Thanksgiving out of the way, 

we are now full on into the holiday season. 

And if there's one thing I love,

it's Christmas in Paris.

When you love Christmas AND Paris,

put the two together and it becomes heaven on earth! 

I love the traditions, the sparkly lights,

the colors and dressed up windows and of course, the food. 

I just read an author who described Europe as the color gray.

They certainly make up for it with all the lights and storefront ribbons and boughs. 

And Buche de Noel!

These little beauties are known as Yule logs, 

traditionally made from a Genoise or other yellow sponge cake

with a frosting and filling of chocolate buttercream,

 a fork raked across to resemble bark,

and powdered sugar to look like snow. 

With my French nephew now living with us, 

I might even attempt to make one this year. 

I'll post the recipe when I find the right one. 

Wish me luck! 

Wherever you are, 

I hope this season brings you 

everything you love about the holidays. 

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

ALP Presents: Rosemary Flannery~ Angels of Paris

(Photo courtesy of ALP: Scenes from the Library. Credits: David Bacher, Kate McLean)

Next Wednesday, November 28th, 2012 at 19:30, The American Library in Paris presents Evenings with an Author featuring Rosemary Flannery, author of 'Angels of Paris'. 

Being two of my favorite subjects, I'm deeply sorry to miss this. Rosemary Flannery is an American living in Paris since 1989 and a member of the Paris Writers Group. She has contributed articles to France Today and other publications and serves as a tour guide of museums, monuments and neighborhoods with Passport to Paris. She co-produced and hosted, French Encounters, a Public TV program on French Culture and created The Art Beat, a weekly cultural magazine for Paris Live Radio. Her first book, Angels of Paris, has been released this month by The Little Bookroom, NYC and distributed by Random House.

Book review by Popcorn Paris: 

"They're hovering everywhere, hiding in plain sight, each telling their own stories about the city--of romance and royalty, war and revolution, miracles and pilgrimages, art and architecture. Angels of Paris features beautiful photos taken from dawn to dusk, in all seasons, accompanied by text explaining the story behind the creation of each angel and of the location in which it is found. Readers will learn about Paris's history, buildings and pivotal figures (monks, pirates Crusaders, duchesses, saints, sinners and more) through the abundant, beautiful and surprising depictions of angels from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century. Rosemary Flannery has found angels on friezes and plaques, on fountains and facades, clocks and sundials, monuments and mansions, rooftops and door-knockers. On an enchanting shop sign above a turn-of-the-century patisserie, she's even found a pair of angels tossing chocolate and vanilla macarons to the entering patrons..." 

For more about Flannery and her tour schedule, go to Angelsofparis.com.
And don't miss her at the American Library in Paris.


American Library in Paris  is located at:
10, rue du General Camou
(Just off the Champs de Mars and the Eiffel Tower)
75007 Paris, France
• Tel. +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60
http://www.americanlibraryinparis.org/ 

Flower of Remembrance

Photo via Pinterest

The red poppy symbolizes many things: eternal sleep (think Wizard of Oz), peace and death. In Greek and Roman times, they were considered offerings to the dead. Today they are given in remembrance of those who have died in wartime. On this Veterans holiday, a little remembrance flower for those who have fought and died for us.

ALP Presents: Elyane Dezon-Jones~ Author of 'Murder chez Proust'

(Photo courtesy of ALP: Scenes from the Library. Credits: David Bacher, Kate McLean)

This Tuesday November 6th, 2012 at 19:30, the American Library in Paris presents Evenings with an Author, featuring Elyane Dezon-Jones, author of the 1994 novel: "Murder chez Proust" (French title: Meurtre chez Tante Leonie).

Working under the Nom de Plume Estelle Monbrun, she has published several sequels: Meurtre a Petite Plaisance, Meurtre chez Colette (with Anais Coste), Meurtre a Isla Negra. 

Review from Google Books: 
"When Adeline Bertrand-Verdon, the self-appointed directress of the Marcel Proust Association, is found murdered on the eve of the society's annual convention, Inspector Jean-Pierre Foucheroux is called in from Paris to investigate. He soon discovers that the victim was as ruthlessly ambitious as the pretentious highbrows on his list of suspects, and that almost everyone who knew her has a motive to kill. There's a famous Proust scholar whose prolific research is based on plagiarisms of his students' work; an Ivy League professor who is more interested in sex than in literature; a world-famous Parisian critic whose celebrated fits of existential angst are really just tantrums caused by the loss of his latest lover; and a viscount from one of France's oldest families, as arrogant as he is gullible. But there's also Gisčle Dambert, the amiable and unassuming assistant to the victim who dazzles Inspector Foucheroux with her startling royal blue eyes. Could she have had a motive as well? When Foucheroux learns that a much-coveted Proust manuscript, long thought to have been destroyed, has been unearthed and then mysteriously lost again, the trail of clues seems to lead in the direction of his most charming suspect.

Already the subject of an international scandal for its merciless treatment of some of the world's most sensitive egos, Murder chez Proust combines a withering satire of the literary, publishing, and academic elite with the Old World charm of a deftly crafted Agatha Christie-style whodunit." 

Dezon-Jones has been Associate Professor of French at Washington University in St. Louis and has taught and published in both America and her native France. 

Find more information about her at Proust-Ink.com.

The American Library in Paris  is located at:
10, rue du General Camou
(Just off the Champs de Mars and the Eiffel Tower)
75007 Paris, France
• Tel. +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60
http://www.americanlibraryinparis.org/ 

Waiting~

I loved this shot of a couple waiting for the bus in Paris. 

And while much of the Eastern United States is awaiting Hurricane Sandy,

I wanted to wish a safe and smooth passage through her wake

to all those who are, and will be affected. 

Thinking of you and sending good wishes your way.

We're watching and hoping for the best.

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

Daydream of Paris~

Pinterest

Sometimes when I can't be there, I picture myself rolling out of bed in Paris, throwing on something do-able and walking down to the open-air market under the metro for a tiny quiche Lorraine, some fresh lettuce and scallion for a salad, a small column of chevre to slice and dot my green salad and a freshly-creamed, golden stick of salted butter to spread on chunks of pain complet. I know, I know, the French never put butter on their bread when there is so much cheese to be had... but I do. Then I search out the perfect little fruit tart to follow my delightful afternoon lunch. I imagine leaving the dishes in the sink while I curl up on the blue couch with a cup of herbal tisane and a book on the history and back streets of Paris or a riveting historical fiction by a must-read author that I've been waiting to delve into. I fall asleep staring at the Blue Mosaic print on the wall behind me and dream of piecing together artworks in Pompeii. And when I wake up, it's off to the Marmottan for the world's largest collection of Monets, followed by a walk along the Seine to a cafe within viewing distance of Notre Dame for a spell of writing, pen in one hand, and coffee, then kir, in the other and arriving just in time at the American Library in Paris to hear an author of French novels talk about their writing process. Where to go for dinner is an entirely different daydream meant for another day, dream and post. 

Your First Novel~Teaser Tuesday

Hosted by MizB at should be reading.

Here's how to play:

*Grab your current read,

*Open to a random page,

*Share a few “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page,

*Please no spoilers!

*Share the title and author.

I am on the Oregon Coast this week at my twice yearly writing retreat (Colonyhouse) and ecstatic to tell you that I have finally finished the last chapter of the first draft of my novel. So my pick this Teaser Tuesday is a book I brought with me called Your First Novel: a published author and a top agent share the keys to achieving your dream by Ann Rittenberg and Laura Whitcomb (and I'm sorry to say I cannot seem to copy the book to share the cover with you.)  Ann Rittenberg is president of her literary agency by the same name and Laura Whitcomb is the author of  another writing book, Novel Shortcuts: Ten Techniques That Ensure a Great First Draft and the novels A Certain Slant of Light and Fetch.

I loved this section (p. 69) partly because it includes an excerpt from Toni Morrison's Beloved:

     "Try to include exposition and back story in the most natural way you can. Sometimes you can sneak it into dialogue if your character is meeting someone new, but be careful you aren't forcing characters to say things they wouldn't say naturally..."

     "...Here's an example of back story revealed through dialogue from Toni Morrison's Beloved: Both the fact that Sethe, the second speaker in the example below, was scarred in a near fatal beating, and the fact that she is now able to talk about her life as a slave with such calm, show the reader a great deal about her past and who she has become. 

     'What tree on your back? Is something growing on your back? I don't see nothing growing on your back.'

     'It's there all the same.'

     'Who told you that?'

     'Whitegirl. That's what she called it. I've never seen it and never will. But that's what she said it looked like. A chokecherry tree. Trunk, branches, and even leaves. Tiny little chokecherry leaves. But that was eighteen years ago. Could have cherries too now for all I know.'"

I'm off to read more from the book since I will spend the rest of my week delving into ways to work my 2nd draft. What an adventure this book-writing process.  Hope you're all having a spectacular week ! 

Medieval Marais~ Missing Paris Day

Some of you know that I have a deep love and draw to all things Medieval.

These are some of my favorites in Paris. 

For years we had been walking a particular path to nearby metro stops

missing these gems along our way.

And then one day we decided to try one of the packs of 

Paris City Walks cards

someone left for us 

and found these just around the corner from our usual route. 

Oh the joys of straying from the usual path! 

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Les Huitres de France

While fall and winter are not my favorite times of the year,

the cooler weather does bring out certain booths of interest.

In our neighborhood in Paris, we frequently find oyster stands

complete with wave (noise) machines. 

Some even include the sound of seagulls in the background

for the full effect of transporting you to a Normandy beach from your spot

on the Paris sidewalk. 

I'm also not a fan of raw oysters 

(I like them one way--on the grill in the half shell smothered with garlic butter, 

a dash of horseradish and hot pepper seasoning)

but I do love how an officianado of oysters can taste the difference in regions. 

They are all named for their different locations of origin

and some can actually describe the precise differences between them. 

A friend said to me recently,

"But with all that stuff on it, you can't taste the oyster."

"Exactly!" was my response. 

Hope you are finding, and enjoying, the best things 

you love about the change in seasons! 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Favorite Walk in Greece~ Travelin' Tuesday

We are anticipating a possible business (paperwork) trip to Greece this fall

so my favorite walk is on my mind. 

For years I have craved, zoomed, snapped and framed

the colors of Earth's natural blues and greens together, 

against each other. 

Even though the camera never does them justice,

I can't help myself. 

They have become touchstones for me

and I honor them and my dreams together. 

This walk along the backside of Nafplion's Old Town

scales both the rocky cliffside and the water. 

And ends back around toward the Old Town 

with a cup of Greek coffee (not to be confused with Turkish),

a view of Bourtzi in the foreground

 and Argos across the bay.

And when the deep, rich, hot demitasse beverage made from the beans of a tree

have taken hold, 

a walk along the palm-lined waterfront to the Old Town is in order.

I'll save the town itself for another post. 

Fall is now upon us. 

Hope you are enjoying all that it brings. 

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Light in Paris

Just sending out a little love light

to some people in Paris who are having a very difficult time.

Wishing I was there, wishing I could help, 

but light I can do.

Every little bit helps. 

Evenings with an Author~ Peter Steiner at the American Library in Paris

This Tuesday September 18th, 2012 at 19:30, The American Library in Paris presents-- Evenings with an Author-- featuring Peter Steiner, American novelist and cartoonist for The New Yorker. 

His detective series, starring former CIA agent Louis Morgon, is set in the Loire Valley where Steiner also spends time. His most recent book, The Resistance, flashes back to the 1940's Nazi Occupation where every French citizen is forced to resist either the Nazis, their neighbors or their own morality. And with his arrival to St. Leon-sur-Deme in 1975, under the floorboards of his own house, Louis stumbles upon a 30-year mystery. 

Booklist calls it: "Brilliant, evocative, elegiac and infused with sadness...A powerful and beautiful reminder of Faulkner's dictum that the only thing truly worth writing about is 'the human heart in conflict with itself.'"

While I haven't read his work, you can bet I will be. He also has three previous thrillers (The Terrorist, L'Assassin, Le Crime). 
Click Here to find his blog. 



American Library in Paris  is located at:
10, rue du General Camou
(Just off the Champs de Mars and the Eiffel Tower)
75007 Paris, France
• Tel. +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60
http://www.americanlibraryinparis.org/ 

More Passy Walk and Delicious Italian Deli~ Missing Paris Day

We're back at the Cimetiere de Passy for another Walk in Paris.

Just a few more interesting tombs (or is that an oxymoron?), 

this one with the often-used phrase for those buried after World War I. 

And this one reminds me of the Annunciation,

of which I took a series of photos, while traveling across Europe,

for a friend who collected them. 

One frequently finds stone flowers and bouquets among live plants 

lovingly placed by friends and family who care for their tombs with meticulous detail. 

And my favorite. While I don't know exactly the patriarch's profession,

one can speculate. This is one of the most visually descriptive I've seen in tombs. 

**************

Just down from the cimetiere,

 off rue de Passy and Place de Passy

(which has a permanent covered market

from Tues-Sat, 8:30-1 & 4-7

and Sunday 8:30-1)

is rue de l'Annonciation

with one of our favorite Italian traiteur and deli's at #40. 

Delizius,

filled with cheese-stuffed peppers, marinated artichokes and pasta of all kinds,

is the perfect take-out stop before heading home or picnicking along the way. 

Picnicking being a favorite French past-time,

one can do it most anywhere,

in the park, along the highway, I mean anywhere.

Hope you enjoyed the last of this segment of Passy Cimetiere,

at least until you can see it for yourself!  

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

The Blood of Lorraine~ Teaser Tuesday

Hosted by MizB at should be reading.

Here's how to play:

*Grab your current read,

*Open to a random page,

*Share a few “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page,

*Please no spoilers!

*Share the title and author.

Today's selection is from Barbara Corrado Pope's 'The Blood of Lorraine' (p. 58):

"Martin heard another cough, and much shuffling of papers behind him. Charpentier had caught on. Martin was about to grind the witness down by asking in slow, excruciating detail about her past and present life. He would make her spell out every name, every address. every date. And drive her a little mad in the process. 

This should not have been difficult. Martin's refusal to respond to her provocations seemed to have put her in a state of animal-like alertness. Although she maintained her pose, straight as a statue before him, the way she clutched her shawls together with white-knuckled fists gave her away." 

I just finished Barbara Corrado Pope's 'Cezanne's Quarry' and so enjoyed Magistrate Bernard Martin's mysterious case involving painter Paul Cezanne in Aix-en-Provence that I went straight to her next book not even realizing it was part of a series. Now Martin is on a new murder case in a new town in France, 1890's Nancy in Alsace-Lorraine during the time of the Dreyfus Affair, and he must determine who is killing innocent Jews in the anti-Semitic atmosphere between two communities as well as how to face his own personal tragedy at home. 

Having spent some time in the country in Lorraine, I love reading the familiar descriptions of Nancy and learning about the historical significance and the diaspora of this time period which I knew nothing about. 

In looking for the book cover for this post, I just noticed on Amazon that she has another coming out next year set in PARIS!! Can't wait for that. What could be better? Historical mysteries set in French places I love! 

Angels and Shepherds in the 16th~ Missing Paris Day

Just across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower

and across the street from the Trocadero,

in the 16th arrondissement,

is the Cimetiere de Passy

where you and I have walked together before. 

I'm not sure if you know this about me yet

but I have a thing for

cemeteries. 

And angels.

I could spend entire days wandering around the alleyways 

looking at the ornate tombs and beautiful inscriptions.

Look how clean and perfectly lovely the cobblestone walkways are.

My sister and I visited our mother's gravesite during her visit home this summer

and it looks absolutely nothing like this.

A pioneer cemetery, we chose it because

 it had a natural, messy, chaotic beauty to it

that reminded us of her. 

With my niece and nephew,

we weeded and beautified her plot together 

until we had it looking respectable. 

I love how the little shepherdess looks like she's 

adding to the small garden plot from her own armful of flowers.
I still have a small cornucopia of photos from this walk in Paris
so we'll continue our stroll in Passy next time.



Cimetiere de Passy
2, rue du Commandant Schoesling
Metro: Trocadero


(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

From the Trocadero~ Missing Paris Day

It's been hot in Paris lately, I'm told. 

I'm miserable in heat without air conditioning

so I know how I would be 

but something in me would still like to be there,

walking the sultry streets~

enjoying the revelers in cafe chairs~

the picnickers on the lawn of the Champ de Mars~

the trucked-in sand of the Paris Plage.

The summer has flown by here,

weeks escaping like wind on the moors.

I've barely had time to catch my breath.

I had the weekend to myself which I thought would do it 

but I still feel like I just scratched the surface of my To-Do List!

Hope you all have enjoyed your summer

and are getting ready for that 

To-Do List that is fall. 

I can feel it already in the air. 

Enjoy the last precious days.

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

An Evening Stroll~ Missing Paris Day

Just a little walk for us tonight along the Seine.

I ate at the Cafe Marly many years ago for lunch

and I'm thinking it's time to renew that experience. 

But I loved this shot of the arched ceiling and columns of the entry

so even if we're not breaking bread here together,

at least we can share the beauty of the exterior

and pretend we're on our way in for a little glass of bubbly.

Now a little walk across the Pont Neuf ('New Bridge').

According to the Paris.fr page on it, 

the design of the Pont Neuf marked the end of the Middle Ages 

and was the first bridge to be built without houses on it. 

But my favorite line about it is that it was seen as a meeting place 

for every kind of pleasure in Paris.

It was said that one could meet,

"a monk, a white horse and a streetwalker' here.

Most likely we have and just didn't recognize them. 

A look back across the Seine toward Notre Dame

(its spires shining in the background),

the Grande Dame of Paris.

At a little cafe on a corner near Notre Dame,

we can partake of a Parisian favorite:

 soup a l'oignion.

I'm told this dish is traditionally eaten at the end of a long night 

on New Year's Eve in France

but clearly can be enjoyed anytime. 

And we end tonight's walk reveling in the mysterious beauty of the shadows 

of l'Hotel de Ville, giving a somewhat ominous but thrilling sense.

It feels to me a little like a particularly good ghost story.

And we all know there are plenty of ghosts in Paris. 

Hope you enjoyed our little stroll.

So glad you could join me. 

Nothing like a night walk in Paris!

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Un Cafe, s'il vous plait~ Missing Paris Day

I've been missing Paris quite a bit of late. 

I have family visiting here from Paris and occasionally

they break into French because, for them, it's easier.

Wish it was easier for me. 

Have missed my blog peeps

and looking forward to making the rounds. 

Time to start planning the next Paris cafe visit.

And writing time sitting at a spot just like this. 

A bientot. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Faith is Nourishment~ Buddhist thought for the Day

"On life's journey faith is nourishment, 

virtuous deeds are a shelter, 

wisdom is the light by day

and right mindfulness is the protection by night. 

If a man lives a pure life,

nothing can destroy him." 

~Buddha

It's been a whirlwind, in and out of town

for both the most difficult of family times, to the best of times and back again. 

Right after my father-in-love passed, 

I flew to Park City to join my father's birthday bash/family reunion in progress, 

then back this week for the extended family memorial service. 

An emotional roller coaster to say the least. 

I liked this quote because it exemplified exactly what everyone has been saying 

about my father in law. 

He is still with us. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)  

Tribute to Abb

 

Please accept my apologies for being gone so long.

We have lost a beloved family member. 

My father-in-love of twenty years

lived a wonderful, full, happy life

and still left us too soon.

He welcomed me with loving, wide open arms on every visit
regardless of political differences.
He gave us joy, love and laughter...
and with a slight Texas accent, called us all 'Sugar'. 
He gave me my beloved
and taught him how to be a good man.

We miss you, Sugar. 

I will return soon, I promise. 

Happy Birthday U.S.A.

via Pintarest

Wishing all a Happy Independence Day! 

And especially to those who serve to protect our freedom every day.

Hoping everyone is enjoying a safe, cool and happy fourth of July! 

"We must be free not because we claim freedom,

but because we practice it." ~William Faulkner 

Chantons sous la pluie

Singing in the rain for his supper

on Rue Cler. 

And this was Rue Cler's version of a 'light' salad. 

There really is lettuce under there. 

Hope you had a lovely weekend.

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Murder in Passy~ Teaser Tuesday

Hosted by MizB at should be reading.

Here's how to play:

*Grab your current read,

*Open to a random page,

*Share a few “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page,

*Please no spoilers!

*Share the title and author.

Today's selection is from Cara Black's Murder in Passy (p. 154):

" Drumming her fingers on the round marble-top table of the cafe overlooking Place Victor Hugo, Aimee watched for Irati. The outdoor rattan cafe chairs gleamed like copper in the mid-afternoon light. Sparse brown-leafed plane trees encircled the spurting fountain. Opposite stood Saint Honore d'Eylau, a narrow toffee-colored stone church. Hemingway married one of his wives here, the story went. She had a clear view of the three streets Irati might use to return to her car. 

A traffic light shone green above the PIETONS ATTENTION sign as a rush of pedestrians crossed the zebra crosswalk. 

She answered her phone on the first ring.

'Allo?'"

Some days, I find it's better to get lost in Paris and someone else's fictional drama (and murder and mayhem). I love learning a little about how another author inserts place as character (especially when it's Paris!). And she's got one for just about every arrondissement. Try one. And...see you  in Paris.