Other Paris

By: Luc Sante

Narrated by: Luc Sante

Drawing on testimony from a great range of witnesses - from Balzac and Hugo to assorted boulevardiers, rabble-rousers, and tramps - Sante, whose thorough research is matched only by the vividness of his narration, takes the listener on a whirlwind tour.

The Other Paris scuttles through the knotted streets of pre-Haussmann Paris; through the improvised accommodations of the original bohemians; through the massive garbage dump at Montfaucon, active until 1849, in which "at any given time the carcasses of 12,000 horses...were left to rot".

A wildly lively survey of labor conditions, prostitution, drinking, crime, and popular entertainment, of the reporters, réaliste singers, pamphleteers, and poets who chronicled their evolution, The Other Paris is an audiobook meant to upend the story of the French capital, to reclaim the city from the bon vivants and the speculators, and to hold a light to the works and days of the forgotten poor.

©2015 Luc Sante (P)2015 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Sante has dug up an astonishing amount of material and his sympathy for the people [this book] describes is genuine.... Instructive and lively.... Informative and amusing." ( The Washington Post Book World)

Truly impassioned book about Paris

Luc Sante describes a Paris not of the touristy boulevards, boutiques and bistros but of the shadowy corners where bohemians, revolutionaries, the working class and criminals gave urban life its rich texture (now sadly endangered by unchecked capitalist gentrification). The author's enthusiasm for his subject comes through in his narration, making this book a great read and an even better listen. Easily the best book about Paris currently available on Audible.

horrible reading

I guess there are probably people who like this type of reading. But the reading is so stylized, it is almost impossible to actually listen to the book, which is actually excellent. So, again, great book, wretched. reading.