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Product Description
Product Description
An Expat's Life, Luxembourg & The White Rose is a refreshing and forthright take on the Englishman Abroad genre. Reading David Robinson's relaxed prose is like sitting down for a drink or two with the author in the pub of the title. Indeed, as the tome progresses, so the reader warms to Robinson's down-to-earth character.
The author's very personal view of an expat's life in Luxembourg is not overbearing, and even the most informed reader will learn something new about the history of the Grand Duchy, its bureaucracy and social conventions and attitudes. The book is brimful with little snippets of useful information and trivia for those unfamiliar with the country, and Robinson's anecdotes will spark empathy with readers who live, or have lived, in Luxembourg. --Duncan Roberts, editor of 352 Magazine.
About the Author
David Robinson is an Englishman who exchanged the dingy commuters? life of London for the exciting and cosmopolitan world of Luxembourg. His personal journey provides valuable tips for living in Luxembourg. All this is described from personal experience with many anecdotes. If you?re going to Luxembourg, for a visit or to live, you will not want to be without this guide?which is more than a guide: you will find in the author a companion and friend.
Inside This Book
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
With "An Expat's Life, Luxembourg & The White Rose," we get a comprehensive account of the everyday life, the occasional tribulations (including unemployment) and the experiences of an Englishman who decided to leave the rat-race of the banking industry in the UK and try something different. And fair play to him for that.
In this book we hear about the minutiae of life in Luxembourg (always, of course, seen through the filter of an immigrant to the country). Some of this detail is fascinating - for example the accounts of his many trips to the `casements': the underground tunnels of Luxembourg that linked the various fortifications surrounding this small country (many now not publicly accessible and inhabited by huge spiders!). Similarly, his description of the celebrations of `la fete Nationale' - the Duke's birthday in June - with its fireworks, its festivals and its music is very engaging.
I must say, however, that some of the detail was perhaps, well, too detailed... David's in-depth description of the system for claiming unemployment benefits in Luxembourg, which spans more than one chapter, was (whilst no doubt helpful to people who happen to be unemployed in Luxembourg), not that relevant or interesting to many of the book's readers - including myself.
Still, the individual element of this book - whilst sometimes too specific - is also part of its charm. It is written as though the author is chatting to you in the pub of the title ('The White Rose'), and the prose contains a number of conversational asides. Also, David has really done his research, and we learn a lot about both the history of this tiny state, and its contemporary idiosyncrasies (including its prevalence of `Salsa clubs'!). If I have one gripe (aside from his occasionally terrible puns - sorry David!), it is that we don't hear enough about `The White Rose' of the title. I had expected David to give this bar a personality of its own, along with a series of anecdotes related to it and its regulars, but the pub itself is strangely in the background...(unlike the way in which Robert Westgate brought `Le Texan' bar to life in "Monaco Cool" earlier in this trip).
However, what we do get here, is a long (and this is quite a long book at 293 pages), chat with an expat raconteur about his experiences and excursions in Luxembourg. This book pretty much does what it says on the tin.
In this book we hear about the minutiae of life in Luxembourg (always, of course, seen through the filter of an immigrant to the country). Some of this detail is fascinating - for example the accounts of his many trips to the `casements': the underground tunnels of Luxembourg that linked the various fortifications surrounding this small country (many now not publicly accessible and inhabited by huge spiders!). Similarly, his description of the celebrations of `la fete Nationale' - the Duke's birthday in June - with its fireworks, its festivals and its music is very engaging.
I must say, however, that some of the detail was perhaps, well, too detailed... David's in-depth description of the system for claiming unemployment benefits in Luxembourg, which spans more than one chapter, was (whilst no doubt helpful to people who happen to be unemployed in Luxembourg), not that relevant or interesting to many of the book's readers - including myself.
Still, the individual element of this book - whilst sometimes too specific - is also part of its charm. It is written as though the author is chatting to you in the pub of the title ('The White Rose'), and the prose contains a number of conversational asides. Also, David has really done his research, and we learn a lot about both the history of this tiny state, and its contemporary idiosyncrasies (including its prevalence of `Salsa clubs'!). If I have one gripe (aside from his occasionally terrible puns - sorry David!), it is that we don't hear enough about `The White Rose' of the title. I had expected David to give this bar a personality of its own, along with a series of anecdotes related to it and its regulars, but the pub itself is strangely in the background...(unlike the way in which Robert Westgate brought `Le Texan' bar to life in "Monaco Cool" earlier in this trip).
However, what we do get here, is a long (and this is quite a long book at 293 pages), chat with an expat raconteur about his experiences and excursions in Luxembourg. This book pretty much does what it says on the tin.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3 reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
The most poorly written book I've ever attempted to read
28 April 2006
Format:Paperback
This book is unreadable. The horrid syntax is the best part of the book, the content ranges from patronizing to simply offensive. Mr. Robinson makes no effort to understand Luxembourg or learn anything about the languages, instead he makes wild generalized assumptions about those things he doesn't understand (most everything). He strikes me as a middle-aged man stuck in perpetual adolescence. He also has an annoying tendency to drift off subject in mid-paragraph. If you want to know anything factual about Luxembourg, this is not your book.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful
What A Surprise!
19 April 2006
Format:Paperback
I accidentily bought this book while buying white roses online. What a delightful surprise! Robinson's prose is an infusion of fascinating description and humour. You find yourself travelling alongside David Robinson & his companions(sometimes all in his head) as you become immersed in this exhilarating traveller's tale. I found myself so absorbed in Robinson's journey, that I am inspired to travel around Luxumberg and The Grand Duchy myself. One of the most enchanting stories I've had the pleasure of reading. What a life this man has had! This great little book is jam packed full of travel genre scrapes and adventures, historical and cultural insights and bizarre recollections from the author. A wonderful read. If the front cover photograph of "The White Rose" is anything like the picture, then I'm in for a real treat when I get there. The inset photograph of the hat and umbrella says it all-pure Robinson. If I'm lucky, maybe I'll find him fascinating others at the bar in all his raconteur style. But he's probably moved on to the next unexplored terrain. One can only hope.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Completely Underrated
18 April 2006
Format:Hardcover
David Robinson's book offers a compelling foray into the life of an expat Brit living abroad in Luxembourg. The reader catches a glimpse into the true charm of the Grand Duchy through the quaint and often amusing anecdotes David so masterfully spins. I had the pleasure of meeting the author while traveling in Bratislava, and I can attest to the fact that "An Expat's Life" is an accurate reflection of David's razor-sharp whit and joi d'vive. It is confounding that "An Expat's Life" has dropped from 2,112,293rd to 2,115,269th in the Amazon.com Sales Ranking in just one day. This book should be ranked higher!
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