"The most penetrating account of contemporary France we're ever likely to own. In looking for clues to French character, the author explores everything from wine culture to cultural politics, movies, food and the higher eroticism."--New York Times An enormously entertaining account of contemporary France from the former Paris bureau chief of The New York Times. Bernstein combines personal memoir, informed observation, and news-hound curiosity to offer a stirring and unforgettable panaorama of France--at times exalted, troubling, and occasionally absurd.