The very first French blog I followed was Lost In Cheeseland. Its a fabulous look at Paris through food, travel and personal experiences of Lindsey Tramuta.  Over the years Lindsey has honed her writing to the point where she has finally written a book about how Paris is changing and finding once again its artisan roots.

I absolutely adore Paris and hope to buy a teeny tiny apartment there one day.  Only three hours drive from where I live now in Auge, we can enjoy the best of both worlds – French glorious countryside and the busy, bustling cityscapes along the Seine.  London is rapidly loosing its identity and becoming a capitalist residence for don-domiciled and oligarchs.  Whole areas of old London have been demolished for high rise steel-cased apartments.  Wandsworth Bridge Road for example has almost disappeared.  No longer the quaint cafe’s, tiny artisan craft shops and interior design emporiums.

But Paris is encouraging hers and there is still a village atmosphere amongst the boulevards.  Paris inspired me on my last visit and I filled a sketchbook with ideas and took photographs for my book illustration, along with buying two huge bags of fabric from the Montmartre district, including 100 buttons – all returned to Auge via a convoluted trip to London – boy were we tired lugging those around the London Underground!!

But back to Lindsey – her book will be a good read and I have ordered my copy. Go visit her site and enjoy interviews, detailed reviews and wonderful photography.