A "sweet" surprise..."The Sweet Life in Paris" by David Lebovitz

The other day I went to an engagement party for a friend. After getting lost for over an hour (I was on the wrong side of Via Cavour) I finally made it.

She had a big surprise for me, David's new book! I was just about to add his latest to my Amazon wish list (see the bottom of zee blog). She told me to look inside where he had signed it.

I'm a HUGE fan of his work. His writing is so funny and he's an incredibly talented pastry chef. His blog is a must read for me. I've made several recipes from his excellent book, The Perfect Scoop.

Now he has written a book with about his life in Paris filled with recipes. I'm so looking forward to reading it.

His expat experiences remind me of some of the funny quirks I deal with here. Like how folks really don't like to make change. Below is an except from inside the front jacket.

That a bank wouldn't have change is bananas. At least that hasn't happened to me in Italy. ha

From learning the ironclad rules of social conduct to the mysteries of men's footwear, from shopkeepers who work so hard not to sell you anything to the etiquette of working the right way around the cheese plate, here is David's story of how he came to fall in love with—and even understand—this glorious, yet sometimes maddening, city.

When did he realize he had morphed into un vrai parisien? It might have been when he found himself considering a purchase of men's dress socks with cartoon characters on them. Or perhaps the time he went to a bank with 135 euros in hand to make a 134-euro payment, was told the bank had no change that day, and thought it was completely normal. Or when he found himself dressing up to take out the garbage because he had come to accept that in Paris appearances and image mean everything.