A Year in Provence

Author: Peter Mayle
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-04-01
Features: This book won the "Best Travel Book of the Year" award from the British Book Awards, topped the bestseller lists of Publishers Weekly and The New York Times, and was highly recommended by the UK magazine The Good Book Guide. Time magazine described it as, "Peter Mayle's vivid and realistic descriptions make you taste the exquisite food and wine, feel the sunshine and breeze while reading." Meanwhile, The New York Times book review characterized these books as "charming, interesting, and highly appreciable!" Escape the city, enjoy the laziness, and be a thief of time in Provence! Every vacation is like going on official business, covered in various packages, visiting all over Europe in five days like a flock of chased ducks, rushing through, hasty, except for Provence—the only place in the world where you can have a lot of fun without doing anything, which makes me pause. Here, time is not worshipped, and the moment has a unique meaning. Since its birth, Provence (Provence) has cautiously guarded its secrets until the arrival of the British Peter Mayle, gradually unveiling the unique veil of life in Provence. Several years ago, as a senior executive at an advertising company on Madison Avenue, Peter Mayle grew tired of the hustle and bustle and superficiality of the office. He left the foggy, long, and gray London with his wife and beloved dog, retiring to the sunny and blue-skied southern France, Provence. Mayle bought an old house, studied French, said goodbye to everything in the past, and lived a leisurely life, starting his writing career. A Year in Provence, Provence Always, Back in Provence, every book of his related to Provence stayed at the top of The New York Times bestseller list, and Time magazine described it as, "Peter Mayle's vivid and realistic descriptions make you taste the exquisite food and wine, feel the sunshine and breeze while reading." In Peter Mayle's portrayal, Provence is not just a geographical term but also a symbol of a lifestyle. Urban dwellers who have lived for years in crowded, busy, noisy, competitive, and stressful environments have gained many material pleasures but have inadvertently lost their health and peaceful lives. Wealthy and prestigious, yet with less bright and clear sunshine above their heads, and even less freedom and ease in their hearts. Even if they have the "time and money" to travel, they are likely to rush in and out, unable to indulge. Peter Mayle's books are written for this seemingly fulfilling yet actually overwhelmed urban group. Not to teach them how to cope, but to help them learn to escape happily. A Year in Provence records the life of Peter Mayle and his wife, who worked as senior executives at international advertising companies, living in the remote countryside of Provence for a year. They lived in an old house they had finally bought after painstakingly repairing it. From January, when the northwest wind roared down the Rh?ne Valley, cracking their pipes, they began dealing with local plasterers and plumbers. Month after month, they grew tired of the craftsmen's procrastination. The various ways they devised to deal with them made us laugh out loud. Throughout the year, they made friends with the wild boar hunters, truffle gatherers, and other country neighbors, learned the secrets of goat racing, and discovered how to avoid being tracked by snakes. They also grew increasingly distant from the tourists who disturbed their peaceful lives.