Customer Reviews

A Summer in Gascony: Discovering the Other South of France

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book makes a refreshing change from the usual story of French builders and house refurbishment. The author has captured the charm of Gascony with a good mix of interesting snippets of history, local traditions and the day-to-day life of the Gascon people. He gives mouth-watering descriptions of the traditional food and wines of the region. Each chapter surprised me with a new fact about the rhythm of life in rural Gascony. I never knew what to expect. Delightful illustrations by the author at the end of each chapter added to my enjoyment of this book.

Im normally one for reading history books about kings, politicians and intrigue. I brush past the travel section of the library without a second thought - I won't go to many of the places on the shelves so why should I care. However by pure chance this book caught my eye and thankfully I took it off the shelf to flick through the first few pages.

This is a beautifully crafted story and so well written you could easily forget that you are reading about somebody else's story and not your own. The author vividly recalls the people, the sights, the smells and the emotions. I read a sizeable portion of this book during a very warm day in May and I could easily imagine I was in Gascony (albeit the illusion was ruined by the occasional passing Glaswegian accent).

Its a credit to the author that when you begin to reach the end of the book and he is saying goodbye to people like Jacques-Henri, Madame 'Parle-Beaucoup' and Monsiuer Fustignac - you can almost imagine you are there saying goodbye with him (to the extent that you have a lump in your throat). But one of the most bitter sweet scenes is the farewell to his summer love - Anja. Its at that point the magic of summer begins to fade. he says himself later that his summer in Gascony was like a 'golden capsual'. He then boards a ship back to Britain and you do get the sense that while he is going back to his old life - he is not going back to it the same person.

A nice touch is the final chapter of the book when he returns to Gascony about 20 years later (apprx). I would say this is a weaker part of the book as he could have had a bit more detail about what happened to Jacques-Henri (it isnt that clear if Jacques-Henri has died or done a runner!!!).

Please read this book - its not just about a summer in Gascony. Its about taking a journey and arriving back where you started, but seeing the world anew.

A great book for anyone visting Gascony and wanting to understand this delightful part of France.

It delves into the rural life of a farming family whom the author worked for over a summer vacation.

The story is written in an light style with short chapters devoted to different aspects of the farm, the inn, the family and the community that includes Madame Parle-Beaucoup!

Easy to read and thoroughly recommended.

A Summer In Gascony apart from being a very interesting read was very informative about the region itself. I learned a great deal about the origins of the region.Well worth the read.

A quite enjoyable book about the authors time at a farm and Auberge on a working summer in Gascony.

Apart from finding the work hard to start with, he settles into the family home and Auberge well, and starts to develop a relationship with a German girl doing the same thing.

This seems to be a lovely part of France, and unlike Provence, not overwhelmed by crowds and tourists.

Martin's story sympathetically lifts the lid on the Comminges in Gascony and its proud people. A easy read with bite size historic facts which suggest 'the Gascons seem to feel closer in some ways to England than they do to northern France'.
The setting for 'A Summer in Gascony' is Peguilhan, between Boulogne-sur-Gesse and L'Isle-en-Dodon.
Martin describes the local vegetables, the herbs and even how he learnt to slaughter sheep 'that were a little bigger than lambs, but still not fully grown' and gained Jacques-Henri's true respect.
He discovers 'a world far removed from the trappings of modern tourism'. His story describes an ever changing landscape of actively maintained farmland where people make time for each other.
Martin is certainly relieved when Madame Parle-Beaucoup defends him after 'two old regulars propped up the end of the bar' upon discovering Martin is English ask 'are you a 'ooligan?'.
After touring France for a couple of weeks a pair of Californian visitors found 'this place just by accident' and admit they'd found 'just what we'd been looking for'.
Here Martin gives us an insight to a special place 'hidden quietly away in southeast Gascony' between the folds of gently undulating hills and a backdrop of majestic mountains.
A Summer in Gascony is a really good read - just what we'd been looking for.

This took me back many years to those long forgotten balmy days of summer. I soon felt drawn into Martin's new circle of friends and the farm life in Gascony, wishing I could meet these people (especially Mme Parle-Beaucoup,) and try some of those gastronomic delights. Adding a few new French words to my rusty vocabulary and dipping into the history of the region, this was a story with the feel good factor, leaving me with the urge to see Gascony for myself. Loved it!

Reading this, anyone who took a gap year at any time may well wish that they had spent it in Gascony. Drenched in sunshine, wine and the sheer vitality of youth, this is a delightful memoir of the author's enduring romance with the area, that began with a summer working and living on a farm/guest house in this south west area of France. The author discovers hard physical work, the bountiful culinary heritage of the region, romance with a German student and most of all the unique and independent character of the Gascons themselves. A delightful read.

Kevin Gale - France Bookshop

How this book transported me to the times of my first solo forays to a foreign land. Every new discovery that Martin describes brought back the giddy excitement of learning to live life through another culture. I am quite sure that anyone that has spent time in a foreign country will enjoy this read. The gentle introduction to Gascon history and the unfolding commentary on Martin's acceptance by the locals enchanted me and left me yearning for the emotion of those carefree days as a languages student abroad. The tender narrative of Martin's blossoming friendship with Anja made my heart swell and wish myself back in the days of learning love beneath the French sun.

I did not know what to expect when I started reading this book, but can honestly say that I was very pleasantly surprised and wholeheartedly recommend this book.

Martin has captured the magic of life on the farm and auverge.Although a few decades separate my experiences, as a child, on my relatives farms in Lancashire ,the simplicity, the hard graft and descriptions of his experiences took me back to those happy days. Sitting on the back of open tractors planting spuds,collecting eggs, milking and herding the cows and the best bit , helping to make sausages and black puddings when a pig had been killed .Thank you for helping me to relive those days that had faded from my memory !
It has also whetted my appetite to go and explore Gascony.
A really enjoyable read