France Month: Interview with Pia Jane Bijkerk

Pia Jane Bijkerk at Shearer's

Hi Pia, thanks for taking the time to chat with us! Let's start with an easy one, what are you reading at the moment?
Last year my partner introduced me to author Robin Hobb's Farseer trilogy. I've never been that interested in fantasy until I started reading the first book in the trilogy,  Assasin's Apprentice, and since then I haven't been able to put Robin's books down - I've read the Farseer Trilogy, then Tawny Man, and am now reading the second trilogy in the series  - the Liveship Traders. She's a fabulous writer.

Can you tell me about the time you spent in Paris? Why did you go and what did you do there?
I followed my heart to Paris and have been back and forth every year for the last 5 years, spending 8 months full time there back in 2007.  My latest book, My Heart Wanders, is all about my time there, why I went, what I experienced, and my adventures getting to know the culture and lifestyle.

From your perspective in design, what is it about Paris that makes it such a fascinating place?
I think it's the history of the city that makes it so fascinating for me. I love the oldness of everything - the bridges, the stone buildings, the wooden parquetry floors, the antique fireplaces. There is no escaping the history of the place - it's so present, so alive, and for me I find that incredibly inspiring. I love old things, old design.

Photo courtesy of Pia Jane Bijkerk

Whereabouts in the city were your favourite haunts?
I have many, most of which are in my first book Paris: Made by Hand which is a guide book with chapters defined as 'wanders'  - in each wander I feature a number of boutiques and studios specialising in unique pieces made by hand, and I also mention some of the lovely little cafés and restaurants you might find along the way.

One of my favourite wanders these past couple of years has been in the 10th arrondissement - around Canal St Martin. It has a great vibe, there are lots of new, interesting shops and bars opening up all the time.

There are some beautiful posts on your blog where you describe weekends and visits in Paris, what would the ultimate-one-weekend-only Pia Jane tour of Paris be?
Thank you. My ultimate-one-weekend-only 'tour' changes all the time, according to new boutiques and cafes I've heard or read about and want to explore further. For me, I think the ultimate is to combine a bit of history, a lot of eating, and a bit of window shopping. My partner and I often revolve our weekend trips in Paris around restaurants we like or want to try out - so if there is one in Montmatre we'll spend the afternoon in the area, wandering toward our food destination. At the moment I don't have an ultimate weekend there, but my favourite arrondissements are the 10th, the 18th, the 6th and the 3rd.

Photo courtesy of Pia Jane Bijkerk

Do you think you will ever live in Paris again?
Who knows what the future holds, it might happen, although at the moment I'm more in love with the idea of living in the French countryside as I love being surrounded by nature, and I love french food - it would be nice to live amongst the fields.

You've released several books including Paris: Made by Hand, Amsterdam: Made by Hand and My Heart Wanders, is there one that is especially meaningful for you?
My Heart Wanders is such a personal, intimate story about my journey to follow my heart. It took me a couple of years to write, photograph and design the book, which makes it especially meaningful for me. But I have put my heart and soul into each book, so each one holds a special place in my heart - Paris: Made by Hand was my first ever book, and travelling around Paris, visiting each of the artisans, photographing their creations and interviewing them was an incredible experience. Researching and writing Amsterdam: Made by Hand was very special because although it's a foreign city, I felt I could call it home the moment I moved there at the end of 2007.

What materials do you find yourself most comfortable working with?
I think the camera is the most comfortable for me - as soon as I pick it up and have my subject in front of me, I enter a world slightly separate from this one… it makes me feel very much in the present, like nothing else matters. Pen and paper do the same thing, I can be completely absorbed in the present moment while I write.

Photo courtesy of Pia Jane Bijkerk

What are the biggest creative challenges you face when working on a project?
Time management! The creative parts are always the easiest, most free flowing parts of a project, but since I often do lots of different jobs for any one project - from writing, to research, to photographing, styling, and crafting, I find it hard to juggle each role and dedicate the time I want to each element as there is always a looming deadline. Somehow I manage, but it takes its toll on my everyday life.

Pia made a beautiful window display for us.

What are you working on next?
I have a few projects in the early research phases at this moment, but I won't persue anything until next year - I need this year to rejuvenate my creative energy.

Thanks for your time!
Thank you for having me!

My Heart Wanders, Paris: Made by Hand and Amsterdam: Made by Hand are all available now. You can visit Pia's blog here.

France Month: Review - The French Wallander...

I recently listened to a podcast from the books section of The Guardian. Their literary reviewer was on a quest for the French equivalent of Henning Mankell's Wallander series, he believed he had found it in Fred Vargas. So I decided to have a look at Vargas' first novel, The Chalk Circle Man.

The story introduces Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg, a unique detective who has just arrived in Paris. While he deals with his usual cases he takes an interest in a series of chalk circles that have started to appear on the streets of the city. Nobody knows who is drawing them or why, they are always centred around objects on the pavement and appear in the dead of night. Adamsberg is convinced that they will lead to something sinister and soon enough a murdered woman is found within one.

The story is short, tense and enthralling. Adamsberg is a wonderful character whose methods and habits irritate his fellow officers, but he's a natural detective. He works more on instinct than deduction, which on the surface may seem frustrating, but his mind is brilliant and unique. The other characters that populate the novel are wonderfully eccentric including a marine biologist who likes to follow people and an antisocial blind man. I especially like Adamsberg's partner, who confesses his alcoholism at their first meeting by telling Adamsberg that he'll be 'no good after 4 o'clock.'

I must at this point reveal that I've never read any of the Wallander novels, so I can't comment on the comparison. But I can report that The Chalk Circle Man introduces a great detective in a great story that's perfect for anyone who loves a good detective yarn. It's a credit to Fred Vargas that she created a novel that's funny, dark, unpredictable and original.

Written by Mark

France Month: Interview with Jane Paech

Hi Jane, thanks so much for taking the time to answer some questions for our blog. Let's start with an easy, French-themed one, what's your favourite cheese?
It’s difficult to choose just one…Perhaps a perfectly ripe, rich and creamy Délice de Bourgogne. I would pair this melt-in-your-mouth, triple-cream cow’s milk cheese with a crusty baguette and a glass of Champagne.

Can you tell me about your book, A Family in Paris?
A Family in Paris is a mix of memoir and travel guide. The collection of anecdotes, travel tips and insights highlight the joys and difficulties of an Australian family relocating to Paris and adjusting to la vie parisienne. It’s an insider’s guide to food, shopping and museums - packed with information and woven with traditions and history, it’s filled with things I wish I knew on that sunny April day when our family arrived in the city.

What is it about Paris that makes life there so unique?
I believe what is truly unique and captivating about French life is that so many elements are elevated to an art form. Great thought goes into the simple line of a scarf, the display in a perfumery window, the exquisite packaging of a raspberry tart. This culture of elegance and beauty extends to all corners of life. Quality, good taste, style, attention to detail and the art of living well are infused into the everyday. The French, rightly so, are very proud of their heritage and traditions, and aesthetics plays a big part in this pride. Everything is made as beautiful as possible, and to my eye it appeared that every resident made a monumental effort, every single day.

What attracted you to Paris in the first place?
My former husband, who was employed by a multinational wine and spirits company, came home from work one day and asked, ‘How would you like to live in Paris for a couple of years?’ Picture-postcard images leapt into my head: fashion, art, style, romance, the capital of food. Attracted to French culture and mad about food, I’d always had a fascination with France. 'When do we go?' I replied swiftly, the decision made in a flash.

Why did you decide to write a book about your experience?
My six years in Paris were spent with pen in hand, scribbling away in notebooks, on serviettes and café coasters. I was in awe of the place. Unable to restrain myself, I would stop to describe the ambience of a garden or an intricate doorway. I was constantly documenting a thought, a flavor or a dish. A box under the bed contained a growing pile of restaurant cards and menus, along with tickets to museums and galleries. Writing was my way of capturing the splendor of our new life and trapping the memories. Consequently, the initial stages of the book were created almost unknowingly. It wasn’t until I returned to Australia with a mountain of scribble and a stack of twenty dog-eared notebooks that the desire to convey our experiences to travellers and other ex-pat families kept snapping at me like a haughty poodle.

The book is presented in an everyday, scrapbook style, what lay behind this decision?
Having spent my days taking notes and scribbling down anecdotes and everyday observances it seemed like a natural progression for it all to come together in a warm, chaotic, scrapbook style with photographs tossed about the pages. I also wanted it to be fresh, accessible and real; for the reader to be able to dip into Paris as we had through a kaleidoscope of everyday moments. It was the small, repeated experiences and daily rituals - the rattle of the metro, the smell of the boulangerie and the whirl of the antique carousel that became a big part of our lives and memories.

If you had just one night to show a guest around Paris, where would you take them?
I’d hire a car and head straight to the Champs-Elysées to the grand tea salon Ladurée for tea and macarons (prime time for afternoon tea is 4-5pm). After a bit of a stroll down the avenue, we’d do a quick tour of the city and take in the main city sights including zooming up to Montmartre to view the city below, around l’arc de triomphe and along the Seine. We’d circle Place de la Madeleine and Place Vendôme, home to the Ritz, rattle across Place de la Concorde, past the Jardin des Tuileries and the Musée du Louvre, then cross the river and peek into Notre-Dame before getting lost in the the heart of the Left Bank while gazing up at the Eiffel Tower as the sun goes down…Phew! Then we’d screech to a halt in the historic Marais quarter for the rest of the evening. First a relaxing apéritif at Au Petit Fer à Cheval, a tiny vintage café with a horseshoe-shaped bar and great people watching, before a promenade through the crooked streets and a late dinner at Le Petit Marché, a small, crowded and very French resto filled with locals. 

We can't not mention food, especially the famous things like bread and pastries. How is the French attitude to food different to ours?
Again, quality, good taste, style, attention to detail and the art of living well are paramount to French life, and this extends to food. From the exquisite pyramid of clementines in an open-air market to the antique rack of artisanal baguettes in a classic, old boulangerie, quality (and presentation) wins over quantity. Consumer expectations along with the demand for fresh, pristine produce are high, and France runs like clockwork. The arrival of various fruits, vegetables and produce in shops and markets mark the months and seasons, and indeed the passing of the year as plainly as turning the pages of your kitchen calendar. There is always something to anticipate and cherish.

What's the biggest misconception about Paris?
With one of the greatest café cultures in the world it is often assumed that the coffee will be of a very high standard. Unless you are a fan of the short black, prepare to be underwhelmed. Hanging out on the terrace is more about watching the world go by.

I once read a great quote about Paris: "Paris, pour te dire merci, avec mes pieds, je te caresse." If you could summarise your feelings towards the city, what would you say?
Paris, je t’aime à la folie.

What's next for you?
I am working on an intimate culinary travel guide to Paris that will comprise select, delicious afternoons in the city, and have a similar voice to A Family in Paris.

A Family in Paris by Jane Paech is available now

France Month: Literary Prizes

Have you ever wondered what the French equivalent of the Booker Prize or the Miles Franklin Award is? I did, and after a little bit of research I uncovered a treasure trove of literary prizes that are awarded in France every year.

Prix Goncourt
This famous prize was won last year by Michel Houeliebecq whose name I was fortunate enough to hear pronounced before I tried to say it at a party once.

Prix Alain-Fournier
This one is for relatively unknown authors who are early in their careers.

Prix des Deux Magots
Named after the famous Parisian cafe, this award is less mainstream that the Prix Goncourt.

Prix Décembre
Awarded each December, this is award is even less mainstream that the Deux Magots prize.

Prix Femina
The judging panel are all women but the prize doesn't necessarily have to be won by a woman.

Prix de Flore
For French-language literature, awarded in the Café de flore in Paris. The prize includes a free glass of wine every day for a year, making it the most competitive literary award in France.

Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire
Like the Nebula or Hugo award, but for 'speculative fiction' rather than 'science fiction'. Snobs. 

Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française
One of the oldest and most prestigious awards in France, it has been won by some of the heaviest-hitters in French literature.

Grand Prix de Littérature Policiére
For crime fiction, and is awarded for international writers too, past winners include Ian Rankin, Michael Connelly and Camilla Lackberg.


Prix Renaudot
Runs parallel to the Prix Goncourt and is awarded at the same time. They always have a back-up choice in case they select the same winner.

That is by no means comprehensive as the Académie française awards over 60 literary prizes itself each year. Extensive lists of winners can be found here.

France Month: My Obsession with Macarons

There are many many books out at the moment about those delicious little treats known as Macarons, biscuity/cakey treasures that originated in France and have since spread globally. In Sydney, Adriano Zumbo has an annual Macaron day where his shop sells 64 different flavours! His forthcoming book, Zumbo, is going to be filled with wonderful images and recipes for macarons and will be well worth a look.

I've plucked three different books off the shelf in our cooking section that are macaron related and I'm going to explore, drool and generally make myself really, really hungry. Unfortunately Froth cafe don't sell Macarons. Maybe I'll ask if they will make some for me?

Ok, no luck there. Secrets of Macarons by Jose Marechal is a lovely little hardcover book full of recipes and pictures. He focusses on the 'nine classic flavours', plain, vanilla, chocolate, coffee, caramel, strawberry, raspberry, lemon, and my favourite - pistachio. Bitesize features recipes for lots of little treats including blood orange macarons, which sould fantastic as do the peanut with salted caramel. Finally, my favourite is I Love Macarons by Hisako Ogita, a beautifully displayed and fun book that really manages to convey the passion and obsession I feel whenever someone mentions the word 'maracon' in my vicinity.

From these books you get an idea of why Macarons are so popular. They're a challenge to create, but not impossible. Once you have the techniques perfected, you have the ability to be as creative as you want with the flavours, and as Adriano Zumbo has demonstrated you can get very creative indeed. Another great thing is that they are so popular out here that you don't need to pine for Ladurée or Pierre Hermé, it's easy to either get good quality ones locally, or simply take up the challenge and make them yourself.

Unless you're like me, and take more pleasure in things when someone else has done all the hard work.

Written by Mark

Shearer's Blog Celebrates French Literature in August!

We're announcing a brand new initiative today on the Shearer's blog! Every few months we're going to celebrate a certain genre/concept/place on the blog by devoting a month's worth of articles, reviews, interviews and giveaways to one theme.

August will be French month on the Shearer's blog!

We've got a whole bunch of content that we're going to be releasing throughout the month, including some great prizes that some lovely publishers have donated to us.

So it's time to imagine yourself having a lovely weekend stroll along the Left Bank, stopping for a coffee and admiring the view of Notre Dame and the Seine while you leaf through a French paperback you can't understand but just HAD to buy from a riverside bookseller.

Keep checking in as more articles will be added throughout the month, you can also follow us on Twitter @shearersbooks where we will also be giving away French themed prizes in August.

-Mark