Synopses & Reviews
Tired of Provence in books, cuisine, and tablecloths? Exhausted from your armchair travels to Paris? Despairing of ever finding a place that speaks to you beyond reason? You are ripe for a journey to Brittany, where author Mark Greenside reluctantly travels, eats of the crand#234;pes, and finds a second life. andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; When Mark Greenside -- a native New Yorker living in California, doubting (not-as-trusting-as Thomas, downwardly mobile, political lefty, writer, and lifelong skeptic -- is dragged by his girlfriend to a tiny Celtic village in Brittany at the westernmost edge of France, in Finistand#232;re, "the end of the world," his life begins to change. andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; In a playful, headlong style, and with enormous affection for the Bretons, Greenside tells how he makes a life for himself in a country where he doesn't speak the language or know how things are done. Against his personal inclinations and better judgments, he places his trust in the villagers he encounters -- neighbors, workers, acquaintances -- and is consistently won over and surprised as he manages and survives day-to-day trials: from opening a bank account and buying a house to removing a beehive from the chimney -- in other words, learning the cultural ropes, living with neighbors, and making new friends. andlt;BRandgt; andlt;BRandgt; andlt;iandgt;I'll Never Be French (no matter what I do)andlt;/iandgt; is a beginning and a homecoming for Greenside, as his father's family emigrated from France. It is a memoir about fitting in, not standing out; being part of something larger, not being separate from it; following, not leading. It explores the joys and adventures of living a double life.
Review
"Mark Greenside has written a sweet, evocative book about the pleasures and perplexities of buying and owning a house in a small town in France. It's a funny, enlightening journey. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the trip." -- Richard Goodman, author of andlt;iandgt;French Dirt: The Story of a Garden in the South of Franceandlt;/iandgt;
Review
"This tale of how one man accidentally becomes a thoroughly integrated member of a French village is funny, insightful, and winningly self-deprecatory. (My favorite character may be the nervous insurance agent.) And Mark Greenside's version of rudimentary spoken French is actually a good demonstration of how to communicate in a language you don't know!" -- Lydia Davis, author of andlt;iandgt;Varieties of Disturbance: Storiesandlt;/iandgt; and translator of andlt;iandgt;In Search of Lost Timeandlt;/iandgt; by Marcel Proust
Review
"A light, lighthearted, occasionally very funny romp through a region of France not well represented in the travel literature. With his fresh eye and self-deprecating wit, Greenside sketches a wry, cautionary tale for all those of us who are tempted by adventures in foreign real estate." -- Michael Sanders, author of andlt;iandgt;From Here, You Can't See Paris: Seasons of a French Village and Its Restaurantandlt;/iandgt;
Review
andlt;divandgt;"One of the nicest of the trillions of books about France." -- Diane Johnson, author of L'Affaire, Le Mariage, and Le Divorce
Review
"One of the nicest of the trillions of books about France." -- Diane Johnson, author of andlt;iandgt;L'Affaireandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Le Mariageandlt;/iandgt;, and andlt;iandgt;Le Divorceandlt;/iandgt;
Synopsis
Humorous and charming, Greenside's tale recounts how his reluctant visit to Brittany turns into a semi-permanent stay and second life. 16 b&w drawings throughout.
Video
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;Mark Greensideandlt;/Bandgt; holds B.S. and M.A. degrees from the andlt;st1:placeandgt;andlt;st1:placetypeandgt;Universityandlt;/st1:placetypeandgt; of andlt;st1:placenameandgt;Wisconsinandlt;/st1:placenameandgt;andlt;/st1:placeandgt;. He has been a civil rights activist, Vietnam War protestor, anti-draft counselor, Vista Volunteer, union leader, and college professor. His stories have appeared in andlt;iandgt;The Sunandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The Literary Reviewandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Cimarron Reviewandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The Nebraska Reviewandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Beloit Fiction Journalandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;The New Laurel Reviewandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Crosscurrentsandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;iandgt;Five Fingers Reviewandlt;/iandgt;, andandnbsp;andlt;iandgt;The Long Storyandlt;/iandgt;, as well as other journals and magazines, and heandnbsp;is the author of the short story collection, andlt;iandgt;I Saw a Man Hit His Wifeandlt;/iandgt;.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;He presently lives in andlt;st1:cityandgt;Alamedaandlt;/st1:cityandgt;, andlt;st1:stateandgt;Californiaandlt;/st1:stateandgt;, where he continues to teach and be politically active, and andlt;st1:stateandgt;Brittanyandlt;/st1:stateandgt;, andlt;st1:placeandgt;andlt;st1:country-regionandgt;Franceandlt;/st1:country-regionandgt;andlt;/st1:placeandgt;, where he still canand#8217;t do anything without asking for help.
Table of Contents
I
Getting There
There
Market Day
Pardon Moi
Fête Nautique
Buying a House
II
The Oil Guys
The Floor Guy
The Insurance Guy
Martin and Jean
III
A Day in the Life
The New Yorker in Me
Île Callot
The Police
Bon Anniversaire to Me
Two Loves, Two Lives
Acknowledgments