In 'The Road to le Bearn,' the author's introduction/explanation of how a family of five Australian expats ended up living in a chateau in southwest FIn 'The Road to le Bearn,' the author's introduction/explanation of how a family of five Australian expats ended up living in a chateau in southwest France, I learned a new French term: dans son jus. Sara Silm translates this as 'a renovator's delight'.
This is a decorating/style/lifestyle book which will appeal to anyone who adores French country style, but it will be especially appreciated by anyone who actually wants to renovate a house (in France, or anywhere else) in a French style. The book is divided into four parts, all of them sumptuously photographed: 1) Provenance, 2) Bringing France Home, 3) La Grange Aux Tourterelles, and 4) Living With The Seasons. Parts One and Four are beautiful bookends of French style and lifestyle, but the most interesting and valuable parts are Two and Three. I have read a good number of books on French style, but this is probably the most thorough in terms of explaining how to achieve that style.
The author is a professional photographer and an experienced renovator and she generously shares information on paint colours and painting techniques. There is an entire chapter devoted to different (but all typically French) colour palettes and Silm includes specific information about how to recreate those colours or textures or techniques.
Part Three - in which she shares photographs and information about the renovation of her barn into a guest house - is chockfull of useful information. She is a knowledgable and crafty 'repurposer' and many readers will be amazed by the beautiful old bits of furniture and furnishings she manages to buy for a song (she includes prices) and then refashion and restore. She also has examples of how to achieve a good effect using less expensive building techniques. This attitude and know-how may be the most 'French country' aspect of the book.
My advice for decorating is always to use what you have. If something is meaningful to you, if it's well made, functional and well-designed, but a little shabby - reinvent it. The less demand there is for modern mass-produced furniture, the better off the planet will be.
Although readers in other countries may be able to adapt her techniques and ideas, sadly they won't have the same access to French brocantes and vide-greniers. Even so, this book is a million times more inspiring and useful than a Pinterest board. Prepare yourself for a serious case of house-envy.
A FORMIDABLE HILL: Hills are mixed blessings. In Highgate, even the poorest residents of the 15the century would have had superb views fr
3.75 stars
A FORMIDABLE HILL: Hills are mixed blessings. In Highgate, even the poorest residents of the 15the century would have had superb views from their gardens (for it is unlikely they had windows in their houses). East, west and north, but especially south, where the distinct shapes of the cities of London and Westminster sat on the Thames, the views must have compensated for much. The gothic spires of pre-Fire London were visible and their bells audible - the legend of Dick Whittington listening to Bow Bells while on the slopes of Highgate has, at least, that cement of accuracy if no other.
Not so enamoured of the hill were travellers.
So begins this visual history of Highgate: "the village on the hilltop". Anyone who has ever trudged up Highgate Hill from Archway station to the village, or from the bottom of Swains Lane to the village, will identify with that statement. To give a sense of the elevation of Highgate village, apparently St. Michael's Church (1832) is on the highest ground in London. Its entrance is level with the cross on the top of St. Paul's Cathedral - which helps put the elevation into some sort of context.
If you want a more thorough history, John Richardson has also written that version in Highgate: Its History since the Fifteenth Century. This one - briefer, weighted more towards the pictorial, and somewhat eccentric in its organisation - is a far easier read, but will still give the casual historian the highlights. You can expect some social history mixed in with property descriptions and the various 'extraordinary people' who either lived in Highgate for a time or helped develop it. Pubs, Schools, Kenwood, the Highgate Literary and Scientific Institution and the Highgate Cemetery play a an outsized role in Highgate's past and are still prominent in the village today.
A few facts will probably float to the top of my mind. I was interested to learn that in 1841 there were 21 public houses in Highgate (with only 700 adult males in the village), but then Highgate has always been a popular watering hole for travellers and daytrippers. Many of the 19th c pubs are still here, for instance: The Flask, The Bull, The Gatehouse Tavern, The Woodman and the Red Lion and the Sun (reputed to be Coleridge's favourite drinking place).
Apparently architects and solicitors have always been attracted to Highgate, but it has certainly had more than the usual share of famous residents: Florence Nightingale, Francis Bacon, Daniel Defoe, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, JB Priestley, AE Houseman, Yehudi Menuhin, John Betjeman and others. I was particularly interested in the life of Baroness Angela Burdett-Coutts - an influential Victorian philanthropist - who at one time owned huge swathes of Highgate (including the land that is now Holly Lodge and the Highgate Cemetery). Many of the more famous names only get a brief mention, though, and it is the benefactors whose gifts shaped this neighbourhood - particularly in the form of green space - which are covered more thoroughly in the text.
The book may appeal to a variety of casual historians, but I suspect most of its readers will have some intimate knowledge of the area. My neighbour loaned it to me. At 90, she has lived in the same house in the village of Highgate for her entire life....more
I am in the process of renovating a small house in France and I find myself obsessed with interior decor books at the moment - particularly if they faI am in the process of renovating a small house in France and I find myself obsessed with interior decor books at the moment - particularly if they fall into the 'modern rustic' category, as this one does.
Living mindfully is a central tenet of the 'slow' philosophy, which encourages SLOW - Sustainable, Local, Organic, Whole - choices.
The homes in this book - 20 in total, in 13 different countries - differ in some ways, but there is still an aesthetic (not just in terms of looks, but also philosophy and approach) which unites them. They are all uncluttered, with lots of 'quiet' and empty space; they tend to have a neutral palette, which is restful on the eyes; they all have an emphasis on natural materials and their textures; and they all tend to feature second-hand (used, vintage) materials or local (artisan, individual) materials or both.
This book differs from most interior decor/architecture books in that there is an emphasis - through interviews with the home owners - on how the houses they have created reflect their values and their desire to live a SLOWer life. It was an inspiring and optimistic book, although it felt repetitious in places. Still, a pleasure to read and look at and be inspired by....more
As long as I can remember, I've been enamoured with the idea of the 'summer house' - especially the versions of these to be found off the coast of NewAs long as I can remember, I've been enamoured with the idea of the 'summer house' - especially the versions of these to be found off the coast of New England in places like Maine and Massachusetts. In that sense, this book was absolutely ideal. I read it with the greed of a glutton anticipating a feast- and certainly it cannot be faulted in weight (it's a whopper) or sumptuousness. If you've ever wondered about the huge houses perched on promontories, just barely glimpsed from sailboats, then this is the book for you.
My only criticism, and it is one that most readers won't even mind, is that this is a book of summer houses with exactly the same linguistic understatement as when the Gilded Age mansions of Newport were described as 'cottages'. Yes, these are houses (by the sea) used predominately during the summer season. And perhaps there are a few wet towels hung from railings - one of the definitions of 'relaxed' summer living, as provided by the author. And admittedly some of the houses have a 'playful' decor, and many of them pay homage to the past - with its accretions of summer upon summer - but the overall mood is a serious one. These are serious houses: serious in the sense of having famous owners, designers and provenance. Highest of high-end. You definitely won't see any faded, ratty beach towels - although you will see some beautiful swimming pools and some amazing ocean views.
There are some good ideas for decoration that can be adapted for a summer home on a much smaller scale and budget, but read this one mostly for a peep into 'lifestyles of the rich and famous'. It's maximalist in every sense. ...more
This is the perfect book for anyone who believes that ‘Books Do Furnish a Room’ (Anthony Powell). Home libraries all over the world, so beautifully prThis is the perfect book for anyone who believes that ‘Books Do Furnish a Room’ (Anthony Powell). Home libraries all over the world, so beautifully presented. Famous authors (Larry McMurtry, Jonathan Safran Foer) are featured alongside ‘creatives’ and book collectors. It’s both inspirational and envy-producing!...more
I read this book in an afternoon, and then I asked my daughter to read it. The next morning I spent an hour discussing it with my hairdresser, which lI read this book in an afternoon, and then I asked my daughter to read it. The next morning I spent an hour discussing it with my hairdresser, which led to the most profound conversation I’ve ever had whilst having my hair done. I used to think of reading as a primarily solitary experience; but lately, it has become more of a social one. This is the sort of book that I had to talk about in order to fully resolve how I felt about it.
First of all, the title: deliberately misleading, I think, if one is expecting feel-good romance, but in the final analysis also appropriate. Love - ‘amour’ - is the author’s subject. In her Introduction, author Stefania Rousselle explains how her career as a video journalist meant that she covered the darkest, most violent spectrum of human experience. Hate, not love. The Bataclan concert massacre, followed by a period of closely monitoring France’s far-right party, the National Front, led to an emotional state that Roussell describes as ‘broken’ and heart-crushing. Her personal life was equally desperate, and she describes a relationship which constantly undermined her confidence and felt like ‘poison’. In a state close to despair, Roussell embarks on a project to see if she could find any evidence of love. What was it exactly? Did it exist? How many people actually experienced it?
The book that came into being is a series of interviews presented as direct monologues. Each interview is accompanied by photos, which are striking in their simplicity, directness and mundanity. An extremely diverse cross-section of people are part of this conversation about love, but not one of them is remotely imaginable as a social media ‘influencer’. The English have a colloquial expression that ‘there’s nowt so queer as folk’, and this book is a reminder of how just how varied and, well, weird is the spectrum of human experience. So many of us seem to be striving for perfection all the time; well, here is a place that shines a very strong light on ‘warts and all’ imperfection. I was stunned, at times, by the honesty of the accounts. Roussell writes: ‘It was brutal. People were pure. They were raw.’ Yes, all of those words - but over and over again, what struck me most was the rawness.
Simply, each person in the book talks a bit about their experiences with love. Some of the stories are in the romantic vein, but far more of them deal in the realm of disappointment and loss. I was struck mostly by two things: first, how profoundly lonely most people are; and second, how very few people, no matter how bitter their experience has been, ever totally lose their optimistic hope that love may still be possible for them. Roussell describes the subjects of her study as ‘brave’, and I wholeheartedly agree with that assessment as well.
One of the reasons I read is a deep desire to want to know (and hopefully understand, if only partially) about human experiences very different from my own. This book does an admirable job of getting at the ‘heart’ of what makes relationships so difficult, whilst at the same time underscoring that the need to love and be loved is at the very core of human experience. It’s painful to read, at times, but oddly uplifting, too.
Thanks to Viking Books UK for a copy of this book. ...more
. . . “I understood that in this small space of time we had mutually surrendered our loneliness and replaced it with trust.”
I wonder how many creative. . . “I understood that in this small space of time we had mutually surrendered our loneliness and replaced it with trust.”
I wonder how many creative, misfit kids have had the dream of running to New York City and pursuing fame and fortune? Part of the dream is “making it” of course . . . (Cue New York, New York chorus: “If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere”) . . . but even more potently, there is the dream of both finding oneself and simultaneously disappearing in this vast city where anything goes.
In the late 1960s, Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe were just that sort of creative misfit: New Jersey kids with a huge sense of self-belief and the desire to live for Art. What kind of Art to be decided on later . . . and with some pragmatic notion of Commerce factored in as well. I assume, if you are reading this book, that you are already somewhat acquainted with who they became, but what this memoir gives you is such a wonderful sense of the beginning of that journey.
There are just so many reasons to read this book. Smith name-checks many legends of 1960s-80s New York City, and the book would be worthwhile just for the time, place and atmosphere. But it’s Smith’s vivid recall of the telling detail, not to mention her emotional honesty, which makes this a truly memorable read....more
It might be premature to write a ‘review’ of a cookbook I’ve yet to cook from, but this lovely lifestyle-memoirish book also falls into one of my veryIt might be premature to write a ‘review’ of a cookbook I’ve yet to cook from, but this lovely lifestyle-memoirish book also falls into one of my very favourite categories: cookbooks which read like novels. Marte Marie Forsberg is a professional photographer and her gorgeous still-lifes of food, silverware, the English countryside, her dog Mr. Whiskey, and her own stylish self make this book a visual feast. Many of the photographs are set against a black background and they have the rich detail of an Old Dutch Master painting. Forsberg is herself Norwegian, and Norwegian flavours are the most obvious culinary influence - although many of the recipes start from a traditionally English base, and there are also recipes which are inspired by her time in Italy. The book is divided into seasons, and seasonal dishes - many of them associated with Forsberg’s childhood and her mother’s style of cooking. ‘My Mother’s Recipe For’ is the tagline for many recipes, and her mother is clearly the guiding spirit of the book.
The inspiration behind the cookbook is Forsberg’s transition from being a world-travelling urban-dwelling photographer to a ‘slow living’ lifestyle in an English cottage in the countryside. It’s a potent fantasy, and one that will appeal to many readers (whether or not they are cooks). Forsberg hints at sadness and loss, and there is definitely the sense (reinforced through excerpts from letters and phone calls she exchanged with her mother) that she has come to the countryside in order to heal and perhaps to ‘find’ herself. As is often the case, ‘finding’ herself has much to do with reconnecting to the traditions of her own rural childhood. Cooking, foraging, preserving, bottling and baking are a way of connecting again to the nourishment she found in her mother’s kitchen. It’s all very beautiful and inspiring and I wanted to make at least 75% of the recipes - which is a pretty good hit-rate. I’m going to try her ‘No-Knead Country Loaf’ first. ...more
Six months ago I moved full-time to London after years of living in the English countryside. I had lived very near a large woodland, and walking in itSix months ago I moved full-time to London after years of living in the English countryside. I had lived very near a large woodland, and walking in it was part of my weekly - and seasonal - routine. Snowdrops, then crocuses, daffodils, then drifts of bluebells represented the spring; the summer was a canopy of green, cool even in the hottest weather; and autumn was glorious with burnished colour. Even in winter, because of the high concentration of conifers, the woodland had a dark green density to it. I was aware that those woodland walks were beneficial to me - not just in terms of my physical health, but also mental and emotional - but in some sense it was also something I took for granted.
I am fortunate to live, now in London, very near Hampstead Heath - because despite the many large parks in London, the Heath is one of the few places in that sprawling metropolis where a person can actually find ‘nature’ of a wilder, less cultivated kind. During the autumn, I found myself taking long walks - rambles, really, where I would quite deliberately ‘lose’ myself - and the beauty of the landscape was a kind of ecstasy that was a very dramatic counterpoint to the depression that I often felt after ending my long marriage and living alone for the first time in 25 years. At some point during this time, I first heard the Japanese term ‘Shinrin-Yoku’ (or Forest-Bathing) and it made complete sense to me. I realised that I had been going to the forest, sinking into it, in much the same way I might seek relief in a hot bath after a long, aching day.
Dr. Qing Li, the author of this Penguin Life edition, has written a very accessible explanation of what exactly Forest-Bathing is, and why it is an important way of combating stress in the modern world. The author has spent much of his academic career substantiating what most people intuitively know, and have always known: that being in nature does us good. There is a lot of science in it, but it is always expressed in the clearest and simplest of terms. One of the interesting bits of research that Dr. Li shares is that there is plentiful scientific evidence suggesting that looking at trees or water - even through a window, or in a photograph - has some of the same calming effects (on the nervous system) that actually being in a forest or near water does. My point is that even reading this book is a very calming experience. There is a large, easy-to-read text, photographs on nearly every page, and a very simple prose style. “We are reassured by green on a very primitive level,” says Dr. Ling, and unsurprisingly, there is a lot of green to look at in this grown-up picture book. At times, I felt that I was reading a meditation, either of ‘new age’ or ‘ancient’ style (depending on how you look at it. “Drink in the flavour of the forest and release your sense of joy and calm. This is your sixth sense, a state of mind.”
One of the most delightful aspects of the book, for me, was Dr. Ling’s descriptions of Japanese culture and landscape. Although it is well-known that trees are necessary for the beauty and health of our world, the Japanese revere nature (and specifically trees) in a particular way. My daughter is visiting Japan this summer, and she was fascinated by this book and almost fighting me to read it.
Although much of the book focuses on the Japanese culture of Forest Bathing, going into some detail about specific forests where you can take part in Shinrin-Yoku programmes, the author is also at some pains to bring the rest of the world into it. The last third of the book is mostly devoted to ways in which cities can improve the living/breathing quality of life for its citizens, or how individuals can bring the benefits of the forest into their home and office. Offshoots of Shinrin-Yoku, one might say. I was already convinced of the benefits of Forest Bathing, but it was very interesting to learn more about why I feel these benefits. I shall be breathing deeply of phytoncides from now on. I might even walk barefoot on the floor of the forest this summer.
Thanks very much to Penguin Life for an Advance Copy of this book....more
As the cover photo suggests - a slinky Joan Didion posed in front of a classic Stingray; looking the epitome of smart California cool - this book is aAs the cover photo suggests - a slinky Joan Didion posed in front of a classic Stingray; looking the epitome of smart California cool - this book is a nexus of of personal style and cult authors. In some cases, the author/curator Terry Newman goes into more detail about how a famous author used clothing to represent themselves - Samuel Beckett and Sylvia Plath are particularly memorable - and at other times, Newman just gives us a sort of sartorial snapshot around a stylistic theme. Glasses, suits, hair and hats, for example. Some authors left behind their own commentaries on fashion/style and its importance - Virginia Woolf, memorably, and Zadie Smith - while others are represented by excerpts of their writing. All in all, it’s a very pleasurable mix of writing and images....more
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