A Bakery in Paris

A Novel

By: Aimie K. Runyan

Narrated by: Caroline Hewitt, Imani Jade Powers

From the author of The School for German Brides, this captivating historical novel set in nineteenth-century and post–World War II Paris follows two fierce women of the same family, generations apart, who find that their futures lie in the four walls of a simple bakery in a tiny corner of Montmartre.

1870: The Prussians are at the city gates, intent to starve Paris into submission. Lisette Vigneau—headstrong, willful, and often ignored by her wealthy parents—awaits the outcome of the war from her parents’ grand home in the Place Royale in the very heart of the city. When an excursion throws her into the path of a revolutionary National Guardsman, Théodore Fournier, her destiny is forever changed. She gives up her life of luxury to join in the fight for a Paris of the People. She opens a small bakery with the hopes of being a vital boon to the impoverished neighborhood in its hour of need. When the city falls into famine, and then rebellion, her resolve to give up the comforts of her past life is sorely tested.

1946: Nineteen-year-old Micheline Chartier is coping with the loss of her father and the disappearance of her mother during the war. In their absence, she is charged with the raising of her two younger sisters. At the hand of a well-meaning neighbor, Micheline finds herself enrolled in a prestigious baking academy with her entire life mapped out for her. Feeling trapped and desperately unequal to the task of raising two young girls, she becomes obsessed with finding her mother. Her classmate at the academy, Laurent Tanet, may be the only one capable of helping Micheline move on from the past and begin creating a future for herself.

Both women must grapple with loss, learn to accept love, and face impossible choices armed with little more than their courage and a belief that a bit of flour, yeast, sugar, and love can bring about a revolution of their own.

parallel life facts

excellent book both se little know facts about the times
n it is heart breaking to see what a woman had to yo see that there children could survive

Good dual histories

Narration- unclear why they switched between American-English voice and French-English accent voice; very confusing French-English was unconvincing.
Distractive.

Wonderful!

This is the second book that I have listened to by this author. I have really enjoyed both and look forward to reading her other books.

Enjoyable AND Giftworthy

Occasionally I’ll be reading (listening) along to a book and I’ll know: This book is gift worthy. A Bakery in Paris is definitely such a book.

I honestly didn’t know much about the siege of Paris, or that Montmartre saw so much action, or that the Basilica was built after the siege, or that the aftermath of such time was when the French monarchy was—finally—definitively—over. The lovely thing about this book is that I learned those things while listening to a fascinating dual time-line story, in which the teo heroines share a passion for baking. (Super happy that the second timeline was set in the aftermath of WWII).

Then, as if all of that weren’t enough—it includes recipes!!! With lovely notes, like we all put on our own tried and true recipes. (We do all do this, right?!).

Lovely book. The savory flavor kept right off the page. Excellent narrations. Can’t wait to get to baking.

Details of Paris in those eras

I enjoyed the characters and the settings. I disliked the snobbery of the upper class and their total disregard of the common people