A YEAR IN THE MERDE - and the sequel - MERDE ACTUALLY

Toronto: Penguin Canada, 2005. Book. Illus. by Elizabeth Van Itallie;. Near Fine. Soft cover. Later Printing. 8vo. 276, 411 pp. Trade paperback format. Merde Actually is a first printing; A Year in the Merde is a sixth. Both books have light rubbing on the corners with uncreased spines; no interior markings. Covers by Elizabeth Van Itallie. This is the story of a twenty-seven year old Brit brought to Paris by a French company to open a chain of British tearooms. Soon enough, he finds himself juggling a group of grumbling French employees, a treacherous Parisian boss, and a succession of lusty girlfriends, one of whom happens to be the boss's morally challenged daughter. He soon becomes immersed in the contradictions of French culture. The book reveals the secrets of how to get the best out of the grumpiest Parisian waiter, how to survive a French business meeting, and how not to buy a house in the French countryside. An urban antidote to A Year in Provence, a funny account of the life of an expat in Paris, for Francohiles and Francophobes alike. The Chapters are: A YEAR IN THE MERDE: Septembre: Never the Deux Shall Meet; Octobre: One Foot in the Merde; Novembre: Make Yourself Chez Moi; Decembre: God Save the Cuisine; Janvier: A Maison in the Country; Fevrier: Make Amour Not War; Mars: The Joy of Suppositories; Avril: Liberte Egalite Get Out of My Way; and Mai: 1968 and All That. MERDE ACTUALLY: Sexe and the Country; Can You Be Arsed; Don't Get Merde Get Even; Liberte Egalite Salon de The; That Was No Lady That Was Your Wife; Ex and the City; Maybe It's Because I'm Not a Londoner; and In the Merde for Love; followed by an epilogue..