Paris

If Adam Gopniks Paris to the Moon described daily life in contemporary Paris, this book describes daily life in Paris throughout its history: a history of the city from the point of view of the Parisians themselves. Paris captures everyones imaginations: Its a backdrop for Prousts fictional pederast, Robert Doisneaus photographic kiss, and Edith Piafs serenaded soldier-lovers; a home as much to romance and love poems as to prostitution and opium dens. The many pieces of the city coexist, each one as real as the next. Whats more, the conflicted identity of the city is visible everywhere-between cobblestones, in bars, on the métro. In this lively and lucid volume, Andrew Hussey brings to life the urchins and artists whove left their marks on the city, filling in the gaps of a history that affected the disenfranchised as much as the nobility. Paris: The Secret History ranges across centuries, movements, and cultural and political beliefs, from Napoleons overcrowded cemeteries to Balzacs nocturnal flight from his debts. For Hussey, Paris is a city whose long and conflicted history continues to thrive and change. The books is a picaresque journey through royal palaces, brothels, and sidewalk cafés, uncovering the rich, exotic, and often lurid history of the worlds most beloved city.