A Year in the Merde

“Highly entertaining,” this comic novel about about an English man who moves to France “renders the flavor of life in Paris impeccably” (Washington Post).

A Year in the Merde is the almost-true account of an expat in Paris. The book is narrated by Paul West, a twenty-seven-year-old Brit who is brought to Paris by a French company to open a chain of British “tea rooms.” He must manage of a group of lazy, grumbling French employees, maneuver around a treacherous Parisian boss, while lucking into a succession of lusty girlfriends (one of whom happens to be the boss's morally challenged daughter). He soon becomes immersed in the contradictions of French culture: the French are not all cheese-eating surrender monkeys, though they do eat a lot of smelly cheese, and they are still in shock at being stupid enough to sell Louisiana, thus losing the chance to make French the global language. The book will also tell you how to get the best out of the grumpiest Parisian waiter, how to survive a French business meeting, and how not to buy a house in the French countryside.

The author originally wrote A Year in the Merde just for fun and self-published it in France in an English-language edition. Weeks later, it had become a word-of-mouth hit for expats and the French alike. With translation rights now sold in eleven countries, this bestselling book is perfect for readers who can never quite decide whether they love—or love to hate—the French.

“Acerbic, insulting, un-PC and mostly hilarious.” ―San Francisco Chronicle.

“The antidote to Peter Mayle . . . will appeal equally to Francophobes and Francophiles.” ―New York Post