Reflecting on 25 Years in Provence: A Comparison of Then and Now

shirley denise: I have always been a fan of Peter Mayle and I have several of his books. His attitude towards the french countryside is heart warming and makes one want to pack a bag and move. He writes with ease and his french expressions are always correct. My only criticism of this particular book is that it seems very much like the others with nothing very different. For someone for whom it is their first book by this author, by all means read it. However, if you have read the others, you may have a sense of déjà vu like I have.

Canada on Feb 26, 2023

G. V. Carpio: Bought the Kindle version of this book. This is my 3rd Mayle book and, as before, enjoyed it immensely. This book, however, has a chapter that contains photos shot by his wife and he had brief descriptions of each. Unfortunately, the photos do not appear in my Kindle. Best to buy the hard copy version to fully appreciate.

Update: The photos are there! They are at the end of the book after all; a series of pictures, not interspersed with the captions in the main body of the book.

United States on Feb 09, 2023

Kindle Customer: I have read Peter Mayle's books a few times now. I never tire of his sense of humor and reading of the colorful characters that come alive in the pages.the staff

Australia on Jan 17, 2023

Gail: The book was helpful but not what Provence is like now. Made me nostalgic for a period that has passed.

United States on Oct 10, 2022

Alex: As an enormous admirer of Mr. Mayle’s work, I was so happy to welcome this to my collection. Beautifully printed, it arrived very quickly. The novel itself is absolutely wonderful; rib-achingly funny, deeply touching, and it offers a chance to explore Provenance from afar. I highly recommend this as an addition to everyone’s library.

Canada on Sep 12, 2022

Client d'Amazon: Pour me remettre au niveau en anglais

France on Aug 27, 2022

JANET: I enjoyed Mr Mayle's book of adventures during his first year in his new home in Provence, and was curious to read his thoughts after 25 years there. His writing is like he's a familiar friend and you're sitting with him in a cafe or walking through his backyard vineyard as he shares the beauty all around him with you. The slow, peaceful grace of the life he found in his beloved Provence shines and warms throughout this book. His humor, often self deprecating but never malicious, was very refreshing. I was saddened that he passed perhaps before this final book was complete but in it he included so much reverence for the land he loved that it is his testament. If we had to lose him, I'm glad he didn't have to suffer through the covid years and went out still smiling. May God bless Peter Mayle for his good works, I look forward to reading all those he wrote about. RIP. 👉❤👈

United States on Jan 04, 2022

Red Boat Bill: I had to look up the time reference, this is written in the journalist style, where everything is in the present tense. My best guess is the content is from ~1985 to ~2015. From there, it's easy to become ensnared in Mayles' sales pitch. Even the things that bother him become part of the charm. This is a snapshot of a time that will probably never repeat, but it's enjoyable to relive his experience.

United States on May 21, 2021

David: It was chance which led to what can only be described as a great sadness. The wording gave some forewarning, saying it was Peter Mayle's last book - perhaps he had retired, but no, sadly that was not the case, unbeknown to me until this point, he had in fact died in 2018. The sadness this belated piece of news had is difficult to put into words. Hopefully Jennie Mayle is somehow managing to cope with the loss of her dear husband. My first contact with Peter's memoir's and novels was in 1993 when the BBC aired their mini-series of 'A Year in Provence' and the point at which I purchased the hardback illustrated impression of his book of the same title. Since then I've had the pleasure of reading most of his other work. I for one feel my literary world has suffered a significant loss that will never be replaced with such style, humour and compassion. These enjoyable chapters in our lives have this awful habit of disappearing and are not always replaced by anything nearly as enjoyable. Thank you Peter for adding something rather special to my life.

United Kingdom on Sep 28, 2019

Sydney Williams: “My Twenty-Five Years in Provence”
Peter Mayle

“After several months our luck finally changed. We found a house on a hillside,
with several thousand acres of the Luberon Natural Regional Park at the end of the back garden,
a modest vineyard and the fine old village of Ménerbes two minutes away.”
Peter Mayle (1939-2018)
My Twenty-Five years in Provence, 2019

Peter Mayle and Provence have been as one, since his first book A Year in Provence was published in 1989. He and his wife, in their early fifties, had moved two years earlier from England to the small village of Ménerbes in the Provence region of southwestern France.

Mr. Mayle, who died in January 2018 at age 79, was the author of sixteen books, most dealing with Provence, four of them novels set in the region. He was best when describing life in the small village where he lived. This book comprises twenty-two vignettes – a series of sketches – that reflect his quarter century in the region. It is a rambling romp through the years, from the drizzly day when he and his wife first decided they might move permanently to the area where the sun shines 300 days of the year: “The...

United States on Apr 11, 2019