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Amazon.co.uk Review
Many of us share a daydream. In idle moments, we delight ourselves with the thought of leaving Britain's grey climate behind and making a go of it in some sultry foreign locale. And if we're really ambitious with our daydreams, we think about transforming some exotic ruin into a splendid place to live. Rosemary Bailey and her husband, however, did more than just daydream. The beguiling Life in a Postcard tells how the couple were travelling in the French Pyrenees in 1988 when they were smitten with a crumbling medieval monastery which they later bought. Surrounded by peach orchards and snow-capped peaks, the area was rich with traces of the long-vanished monks: the sunken crypt, the stone arches of the cloister, the frescoes in the 13th-century chapel. Whenever they could, the couple visited Corbiac over the next few years, until they finally summoned the courage to relocate from urban London to rural France with their young son. With only the earnings from their freelance writing careers to support them, they performed the Herculean task of restoring the monastery to its former glory.
Reading this utterly unputdownable account, it's easy to share the dream that drove the couple. But this isn't just aspirational wish-fulfilment; Bailey is mercilessly frank about the considerable strain put on their relationship, as well as the various horrors of living in a leaky, run-down property. But despite all that, the enjoyment of Life in a Postcard comes from our sharing this vivid evocation of the beauty of French Catalonia (with its famous cooking), and the tempting possibilities that (with the kind of determination that Bailey and her husband possessed) we too could be living a life like theirs. And if we can't, this book is a highly diverting substitute. --Barry Forshaw
Time Out
More diverse than the usual British transplant to that ideal place...Sweet book'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I would give it 10 stars if I could. I bought it with some cynicism. I enjoy the genre but was not interested in yet another book about French delicacies, lavender, scenery and climate. Rosemary has struck a brilliant balance in Life in a Postcard. There is something for everyone. It is a frank account of the challenges in setting up a home away from home in a country that is riddled with hurdles and difficulties that few of us will come across on casual visits.
Rosemary writes beautifully about her beloved monastery, about the trials and tribulations of bringing up a child largely on her own and doing her best to ensure that he is well integrated and happy in his new environment. For all their qualities the “Driving over Lemons” of this world lack the depth of historical knowledge, insightfulness and incisiveness that you will find in “Life in a Postcard”. I cannot recommend it enough.
Rosemary writes beautifully about her beloved monastery, about the trials and tribulations of bringing up a child largely on her own and doing her best to ensure that he is well integrated and happy in his new environment. For all their qualities the “Driving over Lemons” of this world lack the depth of historical knowledge, insightfulness and incisiveness that you will find in “Life in a Postcard”. I cannot recommend it enough.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A really evocative and well-written book. The author not only draws us into the daily frustrations and joys of buying a dream home abroad - in this case a ruined medieval monastery - but paints a fascinating picture of rural village life in French Catalonia, a community that is multi-cultural in the extreme, with ex-pats, many of them hippies, from all European countries living in surprising harmony.
Move over Peter Mayle et al - this book deserves to be a bestseller.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I really enjoyed this - the author paints an alluring picture of her extraordinary life in a tiny village in the Pyrenees, and the real sense of community there. Rosemary Bailey writes very well indeed and there's a nice balance of inner dialogue and honesty with the strong sense of place. Really makes you want to go there...
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great book...
I bought this book because we are thinking of holidaying in this part of France having seen the scenery on the TV coverage of the Tour de France. Read more
Published 8 months ago by franny
An old monastry in deepest France.
A pleasant & easy read, hard to put down if you like reading about people who move into an old tumbledown property & are prepared to work hard & long to restore it to their dream. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Shirley, Bourton.
Wish you were hear?
Wonderfully written, you can almost taste the good food and feel the frustration of the waiting for the French to finish things, the way Britain used to be
Published 15 months ago by Denise K. Church
Disappointed
I agree with 'A Customer's' review. This is the first book of this genre I haven't been able to finish. Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2010 by Ms. A. J. Kemp
life in a postcard
great book, well written lots of history,and a place we have visited, recommend as a good read. Beryl.
Published on 2 Aug 2009 by Antony Mundy
Padded
If this was a sunday times best seller then the competion must have been dire. Writing style is amateurish, a reminder of all those school essays entitled "What I did on My... Read more
Published on 26 April 2008 by TT
I felt it never really got going
I love the genre of people taking on the challenge of moving to a new place and setting up, dealing with the local culture and people. Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2006 by Kilkenny_Cat
Yet another....!
I bought this book with high hopes, having read some of the reviews, but was disappointed. The author writes well about some of the scenery and culture of the region, but if I had... Read more
Published on 28 April 2003
Nice Try But No Cigar...
I came to this book with high hopes - knowing the area extremely well. I felt that it was neither fish nor fowl; not a personal memoir nor a "guide book", although... Read more
Published on 26 Jun 2002
Move Over Peter Mayall - here's the real South of France
There is a little-known part of the French Pyrenees which is the new Provence: Ms Bailey's luminous evocation of the inscape and landscape of her Romanesque monastery and its... Read more
Published on 16 April 2002 by aspens1@compuserve.com
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