La Vie
A Year in Rural France
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La Vie
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Narrated by:
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Leighton Pugh
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
The Charente: roofs of red terracotta tiles, bleached-white walls, windows shuttered against the blaring sun. The baker does his rounds in his battered little white van with a hundred warm baguettes in the back, while a cat picks its way past a Romanesque church, the sound of bells skipping across miles of rolling, glorious countryside.
For many years a farmer in England, John Lewis-Stempel yearned once again to live in a landscape where turtle doves purr and nightingales sing, as they did almost everywhere in his childhood. He wanted to be self-sufficient, to make his own wine and learn the secrets of truffle farming. And so, buying an old honey-coloured limestone house with bright blue shutters, the Lewis-Stempels began their new life as peasant farmers.
Over that first year, Lewis-Stempel fell in love with the French countryside, from the wild boar that trot past the kitchen window to the glow-worms and citronella candles that flicker in the evening garden. Although it began as a practical enterprise, it quickly became an affair of the heart: of learning to bite the end off the morning baguette; taking two hours for lunch; in short, living the good life - or as the French say, La Vie.
©2023 John Lewis-Stempel (P)2023 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"John Lewis-Stempel sets off from the UK to the rural far west of France - la France profonde - where he and his wife settle to a farming life in a draughty house with a small menagerie of pets and farm animals and a few acres of vineyards. Life on John's blustery Charente escarpment is a far cry from our sun-baked Olive Farm in Provence. Still, I was quickly drawn into his world and his fascinating pot-pourri of all things French. His is a good-natured universe of horses and hares, hoopoes and hens...Like the dormice who nest in the attic, you soon want to snuggle up in the spare bedroom. It reminded me all over again of why I threw up everything for the magic of La Belle France." (Carol Drinkwater, author of The Olive Farm)
"John Lewis-Stempel's story of a year on his smallholding in the Charente is warm and vivid and beautiful. He plants his toes in the French earth and turns his lyrical gaze on the land, the people, the deep community spirit. Above all he does what he does best, he writes with virtuosity about the countryside and, in doing so, he writes about himself." (Trevor Dolby, author of One Place de l’Eglise)
"A clear-eyed and unsentimental, yet utterly beguiling immersion in La France Profonde, keenly observed and beautifully told." (Felicity Cloake, author of One More Croissant for the Road)
What listeners say about La Vie
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bj Scase
- 08-12-24
sharing a year in rural France
Absolutely brilliant. I felt like I lived it out with him and his family. So well written.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Ruth
- 04-01-24
Relaxing listen
Perfect way to drift away to the French countryside. Happy memories for me of the very many holidays in rural France.
As with all John Lewis Stemple book's the writing is beautifully descriptive.
The narration was excellent.
To be recommended for a lovely gentle listen.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Dragonfly Gardener
- 31-08-23
Simply wonderful!
I listen to audiobooks while I work and this was one of the best I've ever heard. The authors writing is beautifully poetic, thought-provoking, emotional and educational. I just loved it! The narrator did a brilliant job too. Fabulous! I will now look for more by both author and narrator.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- e.john
- 22-11-23
Very enjoyable listen
Another beautiful book narrated superbly. A snapshot of rural French village life throughout the year, full of insightful observations from an author who paints pictures of the seasonal changes in words.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- JKW
- 23-10-24
Exquisite
I looked forward to each evening’s listen. If you love fauna and flora, food and l'Hexagone, this is a must. Wonderfully read too. I’m hoping for a sequel.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- veyza
- 05-08-23
JLS in France
This follows the now familiar JLS formula: a diary, rich descriptions of nature, social observation, and few goody recipes. All very enjoyable. My problem is that if such natural richness remains in France, England needs his voice more than they do.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 09-03-24
Perfect
I could see, hear and smell every detail of this simple, everyday life in France. Just joyful.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Hils
- 18-06-23
A delight
A lovely summing up of a wonderful French living experience; beautifully read in a gorgeously mellifluous voice.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- M. E. Birch
- 29-09-24
Simply a treat.
I thoroughly enjoyed this lovely little book, a wander through the year in rural SW France in the company of one of our best nature writers. A treat. I shall listen to it again and again I’m sure.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- John
- 27-06-23
French without tears
The author paints a loving imaged of rural France. I look forward to another book describing his experiences of peasant farming in South West France.
The book made me nostalgic for my many holiday visits to that area of France.
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1 person found this helpful