My (Part-Time) Paris Life: How Running Away Brought Me Home

by Lisa Anselmo Narrated by Lisa Anselmo

Overview

Lisa Anselmo wrapped her entire life around her mother, a strong woman who was a defining force in Lisa's life-maybe too defining. When her mother dies from breast cancer, Lisa realizes she hasn't built a life of her own and struggles to find her purpose. Who is she without her mother-and her mother's expectations?

Desperate for answers, she turns to her favorite city-Paris-and impulsively buys a small apartment, refusing to play it safe for the first time. What starts out as an act of survival sets Lisa on a course that reshapes her life in ways she never could have imagined. Suddenly, she's living like a local in a city she thought she knew, but her high school French, while fine for buying bread at the corner boulangerie, goes only so far when Paris gives her a strong dose of real life. From dating to homeownership in a foreign country, Lisa quickly learns it's not all picnics on the Seine, and starts to doubt herself-and her love of the city. But she came to Paris to be happy, and she can't give up now. Isn't happiness worth fighting for?

My (Part-time) Paris Life is a story for anyone who's ever felt lost or hopeless, but still dreams of something more. This candid memoir explores one woman's search for peace and meaning, and how the ups and downs of expat life in Paris taught her to let go of fear, find self-worth, and create real, lasting happiness in the City of Light.

This program is read by the author.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

07/11/2016
In this enjoyable, self-searching memoir, Anselmo embraces her fears and makes a decision that changes her life. Living in New York and working as a top creative director for Time Inc., she loved her job, which allowed her to travel to Paris regularly. But beneath the polished surface, Anselmo struggled for independence from a controlling mother whom she loved dearly yet who also inhibited her personal growth. When Anselmo’s mother dies from breast cancer, she is shattered; in time, she begins to build a new life for herself. She purchases an apartment in a working class neighborhood of Paris and immerses herself in everyday Parisian life. When her apartment develops what initially seems to be a small leak, Anselmo finds herself caught up in the Byzantine French labor laws, yet the author persists in creating a new home for herself. She makes new friends, improves her French, and starts a blog. Anselmo writes intimately about her complex relationship with her mother and how her fears shaped her view of life. “It was time to stop waiting to live, and to just live. To liberate myself from perfection and put myself out there-flaws, pain, and all.” In the end, this is a sweet and inspiring account of one woman’s taxing yet rewarding search for peace, happiness, and contentment in the City of Light. (Oct.)

From the Publisher

A poignant meditation on self-love, maternal loss — and the restorative force that is Paris.”
—Jennifer Coburn, author of We’ll Always Have Paris

“Lisa Anselmo’s tale of striving and self-discovery is proof of the magical magnetism of the City of Light. She might have entitled it “Getting to Paris," where a new life can begin."
—David Downie, author of A Passion for Paris: Romanticism and Romance in the City of Light

“Charming. This book feels as if Lisa Anselmo is telling you her Paris story over coffee at a café. An intimate account of learning to grieve the loss of a parent while, at the same time, striving to live your dreams.”
—Janice MacLeod, New York Times-bestselling author of Paris Letters

“Leading with her heart, Lisa takes us inside the “real”Paris: the Paris of intermittent ecstasy and agony, triumph and frustration, magic and dysfunction. Her honesty, vulnerability and simple joie de vivre through the journey make it a pleasurable trip indeed.”
—Amy Thomas, author of Paris My Sweet: A Year in the City of Light (and Dark Chocolate)

"Enjoyable. Inspiring.” —Publishers Weekly

“Poignant…a fresh voice.” —Booklist

"[T]he city is more than a backdrop for her own narrative—it's an active character that contributed to her personal growth." —Travel & Leisure

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171807818
Publisher:	Macmillan Audio
Publication date:	10/11/2016
Edition description:	Unabridged

Videos