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Lessons in French - Hilary Reyl
Lessons in French
by: (author)
3.42 60
It’s 1989, the Berlin Wall is coming down, and Kate has just graduated from Yale, eager to pursue her dreams as a fledgling painter. When she receives a job offer to work as the assistant to Lydia Schell, a famous American photographer in Paris, she immediately accepts. It’s a chance not only to... show more
It’s 1989, the Berlin Wall is coming down, and Kate has just graduated from Yale, eager to pursue her dreams as a fledgling painter. When she receives a job offer to work as the assistant to Lydia Schell, a famous American photographer in Paris, she immediately accepts. It’s a chance not only to be at the center of it all, but also to return to France for the first time since she was a lonely nine-year-old girl, sent to the outskirts of Paris to live with cousins while her father was dying. Kate may speak fluent French, but she arrives at the Schell household in the fashionable Sixth Arrondissement both dazzled and wildly impressionable. She finds herself surrounded by a seductive cast of characters, including the bright, pretentious Schells, with whom she boards, and their assortment of famous friends; Kate’s own flamboyant cousin; a fellow Yalie who seems to have it all figured out; and a bande of independently wealthy young men with royal lineage. As Kate rediscovers Paris and her roots there, while trying to fit into Lydia’s glamorous and complicated family, she begins to question the kindness of the people to whom she is so drawn as well as her own motives for wanting them to love her. In compelling and sympathetic prose, Hilary Reyl perfectly captures this portrait of a precocious, ambitious young woman struggling to define herself in a vibrant world that spirals out of her control. Lessons in French is at once a love letter to Paris and the story of a young woman finding herself, her moral compass, and, finally, her true family.
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Format: hardcover
ISBN: 9781451655032 (1451655037)
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages no: 352
Edition language: English
Bookstores:
Community Reviews
ellaminnowpea
ellaminnowpea rated it
It’s 1989, the Berlin Wall is about to come down, and young ingenue Katie has been offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as an assistant to a famous photographer in Paris. Drama and hi-jinks ensue. The thing about asshole characters is that, in order for me to care about them and want to know wha...
The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews
The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews rated it
3.0 Lessons in French
Working with a famous photojournalist in Paris seems the perfect first job for Yale graduate Katherine. With no expectations, how can she be disappointed, unless it's in herself! Read my revised review here https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2015/05/30/less-than-picture-perfect/
Memories From Books on Booklikes
Memories From Books on Booklikes rated it
3.0 Lessons in French: A Novel
Review first published on my blog: http://memoriesfrombooks.blogspot.com/2013/03/lessons-in-french.htmlLessons in French is a coming of age story. Kate is a young college graduate, who comes to Paris based on a job offer for photographer Lydia Schell. Once in Paris, she is caught up in the life of ...
Reflections
Reflections rated it
5.0 Lessons in French
In 1989 as the Berlin wall is about to fall and Salmon Rushdie's life has just been upended by a fatwa, Kate, a recent Yale graduate, is in Paris working as the personal assistant for a talented but self-centered photographer who is trying to capture the shifting zeitgeist on film. Lessons in French...
That's What She Read
That's What She Read rated it
0.0 Lessons in French
Kate has the opportunity of a lifetime in her role as the assistant to a famous photographer. Not only will she be living with the Schell family, meeting their famous circle of friends, but she will have the opportunity to work on improving her art in a city that caters to untried artists around the...
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