French Impressions - The Dordogne River: from source to sea - Softcover

East, George

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1908747293 ISBN 13: 9781908747297

Publisher: la Puce Publications, 2015

Synopsis

Over the past 25 years, George East and his wife Donella have travelled nearly a quarter of a million miles across France by car, bus, train, tram, bicycle, boat and even hot-air balloon. En route they have tarried in every region and department of this richly diverse country. More importantly, they have, by their rough calculation, eaten and drank at around 4,379 restaurants, bars, bistros and country inns. As the author admits, it has been a demanding pilgrimage, but he was more than prepared to take on the challenge and put on four stone in pursuit of culinary perfection. Across the years, the Easts have written more than a million words in books, articles and blogs about their Gallic adventures, and collected an astonishing 3,000 traditional rural recipes. At the same time, George has registered his sometimes controversial and quirky but always entertaining impressions of the French regions and their denizens. His latest unique mix of information, anecdote, opinion and recipes is French Impressions: The Dordogne River. The book takes armchair travellers on an affectionate voyage along the banks of one of France’s most iconic rivers, starting half way up a dead volcano in the Auvergne region and ending three hundred miles later in the Gironde estuary. On their journey through five regions and six departments, the author examines the diverse cultures and communities, their sometimes turbulent history, and how the past informs the present in this deeply fascinating part of a great country. If you want to know where there be underground dragons, saints with a golden touch and how the good burghers of Sarlat make cat litter from walnut shells, French Impressions: The Dordogne River is the book for you... George is a veritable genius and all round know-all when it comes to France, the French and how to enjoy the delights of their country. This is a beautifully written guide to this lovely and popular part of France.

About this title

About the Author

George East has been wandering and wondering through France, it seems for ever, and writing about it for more than twenty years. His love affair started as a young boy on a cultural exchange and has lasted, in spite of some of his experiences in the country we love to love or hate. But George tells it how it is in his writings about France, the French and life in what some would say is an idyllic place to be. According to the literally thousands of George East enthusiasts and fans, the oversized author's style is a mixture of Bill Bryson, Eric 'A Short Walk In The Hindu Kush' Newby and P G Woodhouse, while his antics resemble more closely the worst excesses of Tony Hancock meets Frank Spencer and Basil Fawlty. As a leading critic once said, 'George does spectacular failure very well'. In his past George has enjoyed a diverse career path which includes pickled onion manufacturer, private detective, night club bouncer, demolition engineer, seamstress and the only human professional bed-tester in history. An eventful spell as a publican won him the title of Worst Landlord in Britain for two consecutive years. George has also enjoyed a long writing career, which started when sending copy for young girls' photo story comics and at the other end of the spectrum racey mens' mags.He and his wife Donella now live and travel in France and Southern England as the author gathers material for new books and concentrates on his quests to discover the True Meaning of Life while meeting unusual people and going down the pub...

Review

'Foreign muck' - The UKIP Cookbook Review; 'Wish I could write as well. He is my literary hero'- Michael Pallin (deck hand on the Isle of Wight ferry); 'Who?' - HM The Queen; 'The book and recipes are a load of carp'- The British Dyslexia Society;

About this edition

• Publisher: la Puce Publications
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1908747293
• ISBN 13: 9781908747297
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 228