C'est La Folie! A Little French Serendipity

Can you listen to one more French connection story, which happened while France is far away? This one was quite a surprise, you’ll see.

A few weeks ago, our loyal reader Martin sent an excerpt from a book called C’est La Folie: One Man's Quest for a Meaningful Life, by Michael Wright. The author is a citified British theater critic who impulsively buys a wreck of a French farmhouse called La Folie, and moves there with only his cat for company. His goal is to become a Manly Man, wielder of chain saws, herder of sheep and possibly seducer of French babes. The excerpt Martin shared was about the levels of macho when it comes to buying a fixer-upper house from a French realtor. It was so hilarious—and Ron and I had lived it—that I immediately bought the book.

In case you missed it, here is the excerpt. In it he refers to the categories of French houses for sale: completely renovated, needs a little work, unfinished renovation, (barely) habitable, and needs everything.

“I will soon learn that there are five levels of manhood in the French estate agent’s virility test:

1. Rénovée: I am a rich cissy.
   2. Petite travaux: I’ll wield a paintbrush if you promise not to wobble the ladder.
   3. À finir: I watch DIY shows on the telly and have my own hammer drill.
   4. Habitable: who needs a bathroom when your tool belt is as big as mine?
   5. À rénover: I am a fearless caveman, skilled in the black arts of the mason, the roofer and the plumber, and I only visit the blacksmith when I have a problem with my teeth.”

I started reading the book on a flight to Cincinnati to see our kids, and by the time I arrived, my mascara was running down my face from laughing so hard. I’ve never read such a charming and funny book about French life, and that’s saying a lot since I’ve read most of them. I also shed some real tears--his treatise on the real heros of the world, for example, touched my soul. The wheels were turning—maybe I could contact the author on Twitter or Facebook, to tell him how much I loved his book.

Above, some of Michael's passions, in an image from his website

When we got off the plane, I tucked the book in the side pocket of my stuffed carry-on, where it stuck out precariously. Suddenly I heard a voice behind me: “Excuse me, are you enjoying C’est La Folie?” It turned out that the attractive blond woman who had spotted my book was a good friend of Michael Wright and his wife, and had visited La Folie! We chatted and she updated me on his macho mission a bit, though I cautioned her about spoiling the ending for me. She gave me his email address. What are the odds?

And if you end up wanting to hear the outcome of Michael’s quest, there is a sequel to the book, called Je t'aime à la Folie.  Just as charming as the first!

In the COMMENTS: Jonathon P, your comment by the tour guide at the Hemingway House really tickled me. Anne, maybe it's because those cats have such interesting names--and maybe they resemble their celebrities? Vicky, thanks for the tip on the Chat Noir socks, a must-have. Anne W. has another French mystery series to recommend. Iz, come back to visit!

 

 

Comments

[Anita]

Have you read On Rue Tatin by Susan Loomis?

[Anne Daigle]

I am in the middle of my third Martin Walker (Bruno ) novel. I am entranced especially since Bruno shares his last name (Couregges) with one of my friends. Two things though--how does Bruno ever find the time to be a policeman with all the cooking he does? And Mr. Walker needs to set a scene in one of the stories in which Bruno spends about 3 days cleaning all the duck fat grease (from his fried dishes) from the walls, cabinets, etc of his kitchen. There are chat noir socks--got to get some.

[Carol]

Merci! Like you, I am always into books about or located in France. Will check this out!

[Suzanne Hurst]

Thanks for the recommendation of La Folie. I will look for it on my Kindle and add to my LONG list of books to read. As for serendipity, I am a total believer! :)

[Kathy Colvin]

Love this!

[Natalia]

This looks charming!Especially because the contents capture our imaginations the way the covers do!
Thanks,Lynn!Looking forward to two fun reads!
I just started Martin Walker's "A Birthday Lunch".Another wonderful one,hard to put down.
Sweet Elley was spayed on Wednesday.Poor baby,our little kangaroo is not hopping too much for awhile,nor rough housing with her brother Ari.
Actually,though,she is taking everything way better than we are.Animals are such inspirations.(I would've rather had another hysterectomy myself than put her through this).

[Christine Webb-Curtis]

I just started Martin Walker’s most recent book. Just as delightful as all the others. I waited for a week to start the book because I so hate to get to the end. I’ll look for this new author as I’m a total sucker for the subject matter—vicariously buying and renovating a house in France. Alas, I never will. But it’s fun to read about others’ experiences. Thanks for the recommendation.

[Dana]

Love this story! Will definitely read the book!