Back from holiday

Just back from a wonderful holiday in India, so normal service will be resumed! In the meantime a quick plug for Parisians by Graham Robb, which was one of my holiday reads. It is my favourite sort of history: all sorts of quirky facts and connections coupled with individual human stories. I never knew, for example, that both The Count of Monte Cristo and La Vie de Boheme (and thus La Boheme) were based on true stories. I particularly liked Robb's description of Paris as a city for lovers who also have jobs and families.