Paris Highlights: Sights

This year we went to Paris for two whole weeks. We invited my childhood best friend Leigh to join us for the first week. Because she's never been to Paris, we planned a packed first week, with lots of sites and delectable food. But I don't want to go through every step of the trip so I've divided it into sections: Sights (this post), Food, Fashion & Style, The City, Chartres (our one day trip), and Lanvin (an exceptional temporary exhibit I went to). Mostly I'll just let the pictures do the talking.

As soon as we got to Paris, we headed over to the flower market which becomes both a flower and a bird market on Sundays.

Yes, he was crowing.

I went on two different days--once in the sun, once in the rain.

Later we attended an Organ recital at St Eustache.

The first couple of days were great:

The Louvre, Places des Vosges, Sainte Chapelle, Notre Dame, Shakespeare & Co., Pont de l'Archevêché (with all the love locks), the Tuileries.

Sketching in the Louvre

This is what happens when it's warm in Paris and the pelouse is not "en repos."

Gazing upward in Sainte Chapelle

Blossoms at Notre Dame

Inside Notre Dame

Sparkling love locks

And then, in the Musee d'Orsay, I sprained my ankle...badly. (I'm still healing, almost 3 months later.)

It definitely interfered with what I had had planned. I could only go out for half days and even maneuvering my camera became difficult. I got a compression sock, saw a French doctor, and I bought a nice, floral cane--like the ones I saw French grandmas using. Fortunately, I have spent plenty of time in Paris. So while Leigh went to see Pere Lachaise and the Arc de Triomphe on her own, I wasn't actually missing anything--except her company.

It still boggles my mind that it even happened. I've never been injured before in my life! And the first time happens in a museum in Paris. Cobblestones weren't even involved. Quoi?!

We also were fortunate to have a wonderful apartment. This was our view:

We were right on Place de l'Hotel de Ville

We managed to visit Jardin du Luxembourg both the first week and the second week.

There were boats...

and ducklings!

During the second week, we visited a number of sights we'd never seen before: Eglise St Sulpice, Musee Canavalet, Musee de Cluny, and the Bon Marche.

Eglise St Sulpice

Inside Eglise St Sulpice

Musee de Cluny is most famous for The Lady and the Unicorn, but it is also home to these giant heads. 

Inside Le Bon Marché

Picture This: An Ambush of Tigers

An Ambush of Tigers: A Wild Gathering of Collective Nouns by Betsy R. Rosenthal, illustrated by Jago


By the title, you might think this is about some sort of tiger attack. But did you know that ambush is the name for a group of tigers (like a pack of wolves or a murder of crows)?

This is an adventure through collective names, told in excellent rhyming verse and whimsical illustration. “Does a cast of crows get a standing ovation?” the author asks, as crows stand of stage and bow. Not only that, Rosenthal sometimes pairs the animals together in perfect interactions. “When a murder of crows leaves barely a trace, is a sleuth of bears hot on the case?” Wolves pack for vacation, sharks put on hats and scarves (shiver), and girl scout kangaroos try to sell cookies (troop). Very creative, a lot of fun.

Recent Read: The War That Saved My Life

The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley 

Ada was born with a club foot and it was never repaired. Her abusive mother keeps her locked up in their apartment, calling her a monster because of her ugly foot. When Ada’s little brother Jamie has the opportunity to be evacuated into the country to escape the bombs of an imminent World War II, Ada sneaks away with him.

They are delivered to Oxford-educated Susan and her large, clean, country house. It’s a completely different world for the children—a world with baths, new clothing (including their very first underwear), food, and green grass. And even though it’s an enormous improvement over their home, it’s unfamiliar, and they find themselves overwhelmed and homesick. Ada struggles with the effects of her cruel upbringing. Kindness and acceptance are unfamiliar to her, and sometimes her panic and fear overwhelm her. She finds solace in Susan’s pony, Butter. Susan herself finds it difficult to care for the children, as she is suffering a deep depression after the loss of Becky, the woman she lived with and loved (the true nature of their relationship is for readers to decipher between the lines). The children do not see depression, but a woman who stays in bed all day long, sometimes mutters about not wanting or asking for children, and declares herself to be “not nice.”

Set against the backdrop of an escalating World War II, all three of them start to heal as they care for and come to love one another.

There are so many elements that I found interesting on their own, and they all came together to tell this lovely story. Living in Kent, the war touches their lives in real and oftentimes dramatic ways. The therapeutic comfort of working with horses rang true (I loved hearing things like when Ada feels a “whoosh of breath on [her] neck” ♥) Jamie also has his own challenges to overcome. I loved the authenticity of it all. Each of them finds meaning and purpose as they go beyond their insular worlds to care for one another and get involved in the war effort. Ada’s troubles are not fixed with a simple hug. She suffers long term effects from her mother’s abuse that take time and effort to overcome. And yet, Ada is as instrumental in saving Susan, as Susan is in saving her.

To top it off, this was one of those books that is wonderfully easy to read. I just opened it up and fell into it. And that was that. Before I knew it, it was over. I loved this one!

Recent Read: Saint Anything

Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen 

Sydney has always lived a bit in the shadow of her charismatic older brother, Peyton. First she was overshadowed by his legend, later by his infamy. In and out of rehabs, court, and prison, Peyton became the central focus of Sydney’s family, culminating in a drunk driving accident in which a sixteen-year-old was paralyzed. Peyton is now in prison for the long term.

Sydney, in an attempt at a fresh start, transfers to the public high school where she meets Layla Chatham. Layla embraces Sydney taking her into her own group of friends and family, a place where Sydney can be herself and feel safe.

 Now, this is Sarah Dessen, so you may be wondering, where’s the boy? The answer is Layla has gentle older brother (I don’t think I’m really spoiling anything here). But one of the striking things about this novel is that I wouldn't categorize it as romance. It’s more contemporary realistic, with a romance in it. The focus of this novel is Sydney herself, her family, her friends and friendships. 

There’s real depth here. Sydney’s family is trying to cope with the imprisonment of their only son—and not handling it too well. Sydney is a bit invisible to them. She feels anger and resentment toward her brother. And in the absence of outward signs of her family’s guilt over the accident, Sydney takes on all of the guilt and responsibility herself. Meanwhile a friend of Peyton’s has weaseled his way into the family like a parasite, comforting Sydney’s parents, while giving Sydney an inappropriate amount of attention.

The Chathams are a safe haven, a place where her voice is heard and she is seen. The question is if she can find a way to be seen and heard by her own parents, recognized as the individual that she is.

I loved it. Highly recommended.

Recent Read: Roller Girl

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson 

The moment Astrid sees roller derby in action, she’s in love. All she wants to do is become a star player like Rainbow Bite. But her best friend Nicole, with whom she does just about everything, is not as enthused. Astrid finds herself embarking on her new passion alone, while Nicole spends more and more time in ballet with Astrid’s sworn enemy. As Astrid’s fear of losing her best friend takes over, she risks losing Nicole, her new roller derby friend, and her developing roller derby skills.

I loved this book. It’s a story about growing up and figuring out who your friends are and who you are, set against the exciting backdrop of roller derby. When Astrid finds out there’s a roller derby summer camp, she’s in, and she assumes her best friend is with her. Thanks to Jamieson’s deft illustrations, we can see the hesitation in Nicole’s face where Astrid does not. Astrid signs up for camp, and excitedly talks about it with Nicole, only to find that Nicole is not going to derby camp, she’s going to ballet camp.

Now she has to face derby camp all alone, while her best friend spends more and more time with perennial mean girl Rachel. From there, Astrid struggles with the physical difficulty of her would-be passion. Her worry over losing her best friend turns to a sort of vengeful jealousy. She also explores this new-found world of roller derby, with its colorful characters (and hair). I can’t believe how much emotional depth, not to mention entertainment, Jamieson packed into this 240-page book. I fully expect it to make my top 10 at the end of the year.

Picture This: Tricky Vic

Tricky Vic: The Impossibly True Story of the Man Who Sold the Eiffel Tower by Greg Pizzoli 

“In 1890, the man who would one day be known by forty-five different aliases was born to the Miller family, in what is now the Czech Republic. His parents named him Robert.”

So begins the tale of ultimate con man Tricky Vic (often known as Count Victor Lustig). He was a good student, but before finishing his studies at the University of Paris, he left to pursue a life of deception. His exploits include posing as a count in order to cozy up to rich ocean liner passengers and rob them at the dock, conning Al Capone into thinking he was an honest man, convincing men to buy his money making machine, and, of course, selling a contract for the rights to the Eiffel Tower and its scrap metal. This is a fascinating tale about a liar for the ages.

I think one of the many things that sets this book apart is that it’s a biography for children about a bad guy. No didacticism or heroism to be found, just one unbelievable tale after another, always interesting. Pizzoli’s design-heavy, graphic mixed media illustrations complement the story. He cleverly represents Tricky Vic’s face as a fingerprint, and draws on archival photographs and newspaper articles, as well as his own photographs to create textures and shapes. If you look at this post on him and this book at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast you can see all the wonderful details he put into the book, some of them almost like secret references to Paris. (that texture? Comes from the floor of the Eiffel tower) He includes the occasional sidebar explaining such things as prohibition, this particular part of the Eiffel Tower’s history, and counterfeiting to provide a little more context and historical background for young readers. Very well done all around.

Picture This: The Crocodile Who Didn't Like Water

The Crocodile Who Didn't Like Water by Gemma Marino

"Once upon a time, there was a little crocodile. And this little crocodile didn't like water."

Indeed he looks on wistfully as his brothers and sisters play in the bathtub, in the lake and in the pool. He buys  an inner tube (swim ring in the book b/c it's British) with saved tooth fairy money, bound and determined to swim and have fun with the others. But it doesn't work out. He definitely hates water.

Such a fun story. When little crocodile sneezes out fire, he and everyone else realize something--he's not a crocodile. Little dragon, once he figures out who he is, is much happier and can share his gifts with his crocodile siblings. When I read the story a second time, I noticed all sorts of things I didn’t notice before (indicators of little dragon’s true identity). Even the endpapers tell a part of the story. I loved Marino’s illustrations—the style, textures, and expressiveness of her little reptiles. This one is a winner!