Memoir set mainly in France (how to repair a broken heart…)

19th February 2017

Meet Me In Paris by Juliette Sobanet, memoir set mainly in France.

“It is my firm belief that upon leaving one’s husband, one should immediately hop on a flight to Paris”

Indeed! France is balm for a broken heart. This is a very personal story of Danielle, who falls madly in love with Nick as her own marriage is faltering and this new relationship proves to be a catalyst in the ending of her marriage. A memoir with many tears along the way, periods of deep depression and oftentimes liberal use of Xanax (used to treat anxiety disorders).

I am not sure whether to refer to Danielle, the pseudonym, or Juliette, the author when I say the lead character is an absolute Francophile and it is to the country of France to which she looks for solace when things are going pear-shaped. It is also far from her home city of San Diego where she can immerse herself in her new relationship with Nick. Nick, however is himself married – he seems to run an open marriage with the blessing of his wife – and is not inclined to rock the boat at home.

So, she finds herself in a terrible bind as she is sucked into a passionate affair that takes over her life and, with it, the powerful emotions and passions that inevitably come with subterfuge. The exhilaration and depression are palpable as she wears her heart on her sleeve, feeling swamped by the cycle of love and loss. Indulgent as this memoir can be at times, ultimately, this is a courageous sharing of raw emotion.

La Tropézienne via Artfully Adored

From Paris to Lyon and the South of France, Danielle shares her love of the country. There are mentions of culinary delights aplenty like Pain et Cie and the Paul Bocuse eatery Le Nord in Lyon. She shares titillations at the lingerie shop Darjeeling in Paris where Danielle buys a soutien-gorge combo (love that word, French for bra). And it is on to Saint Tropez, as she writes: “All divorced women need to come to Saint-Tropez and eat la Tropézienne”.

She describes how she originally got in the mood for her French sojourn by listening to the soundtrack by Yann Tierson to the film Amélie, (and an author after our own TripFiction heart, she says “Just as books can allow you to travel, so can films…” and describes how watching  French Kiss with Meg Ryan was a turning point in her burgeoning love for all things French).

This is a tumultuous period in the life of the author, rendered in such frank prose, that sometimes it can feel quite swamping. She is needing of those around her and of her reader, as she searches for the love that was withheld as a child (as she sadly describes: “The father who never wanted me…“). She is almost that small child who has been a parent to her mother and found her father emotionally unavailable, and now, in her adult skin, searches for that overwhelming, all-consuming and generous parental love in her partners… and, of course, struggles.

This is a heartfelt, bare-all-memoir, that will take you from San Diego to France and back again. She will tug at your heartstrings, annoy you, flood you with personal emotion and finally win you over. Her writing style is good and very personal.

Tina for the TripFiction Team

You can follow Juliette on Twitter and via her website

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