The Most Beautiful Walk in the World

A Pedestrian in Paris

By: John Baxter

Narrated by: Graham Halstead

Length: 5 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Thrust into the unlikely role of professional "literary walking tour" guide, an expat writer provides the most irresistibly witty and revealing tour of Paris in years. In this enchanting memoir, acclaimed author and long-time Paris resident John Baxter remembers his yearlong experience of giving "literary walking tours" through the city. Baxter sets off with unsuspecting tourists in tow on the trail of Paris' legendary artists and writers of the past.

Along the way, he tells the history of Paris through a brilliant cast of characters: the favorite cafes of Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and James Joyce; Pablo Picasso's underground Montmartre haunts; the bustling boulevards of the late-19th-century flâneurs; the secluded "Little Luxembourg" gardens beloved by Gertrude Stein; the alleys where revolutionaries plotted; and finally Baxter's own favorite walk near his home in Saint-Germain-des-Pres.

Paris, by custom and design, is a pedestrian's city - each block a revelation, every neighborhood a new feast for the senses, a place rich with history and romance at every turn. The Most Beautiful Walk in the World is your guide, par excellence, to the true, off-the-beaten-path heart of the City of Lights.

©2011 John Baxter (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"A splendid memoir...Reading The Most Beautiful Walk in the World is the next best thing to a Paris vacation." ( Boston Globe)

The historic stories

He is a little full of himself, but fun listening to his stories and detailed observations.

Fun journey through Paris.

Clever and witty, this book will take you on a charming trek through Paris. Nice narration. Worth the time.

Annoying Narration

Why does this title have an American narrator when the author repeatedly states that he's from Australia? Also, why can't Audible (or Taintor Audio) find voice actors who can actually pronounce French? Mr. Halstead's French was variable and distracting. In some cases his pronunciation was excellent, but at other times he seemed to confuse the "U" and "OU" sounds." The restaurant La Coupole, for instance, had a few different vowel twists. Some place names were mispronounced (rue d'Assas, rue de Fleurus, Barbès, the latter pronounced "barb" when it should be "barb-ESS"). And of course Les Halles is pronounced "lay-AHL" and not "laze-AHL." I would have enjoyed the chatty, anecdotal content a lot more if the narrator hadn't been so annoying; I also found the narration overly dramatic. Could have done with a lot less Hemingway lore, too. I did enjoy the structure of the essays and the history lessons.

puts me to sleep, not in a good way

While this book has some interesting anecdotes, it gets tiresome because there are thousands of them, and they are given quickly. The book becomes a blur and there doesn't seem to be a connecting story line, at least not one that you can follow. Perhaps it is enjoyable if you only listen to a couple chapters at a time, but I like listening to books end to end. The author talks about his wife and how they live in a place full of famous people, but I'm not sure he actually knows the famous people. It seems like he spied on them from afar rather than interacted with them. I'll be returning this book.

I really wanted to love this, but...

Baxter's story is essentially unconvincing. As an Australian who is a bit of a Francophile and has more than a passing knowledge of Paris, I came to this with high expectations, and it was just kind of ordinary.

It begins as a string of anecdotes, and purpose for the narrative structure Baxter employs only becomes apparent about 2/3 away through the book, and even then it is feels uninspired. A collection of semi gossipy stories that are not particularly cohesive.

The performance was mostly ok except two things which were just criminal:
1 -- It's a first person account by an Australian and it's read by American. It just sounds dumb. Hemingway needs to be read by an American man. Toni Morrison by an African American woman. likewise, this should have been read by an Australian man.
2 -- When he does imitate other Australians in the story, he absolutely butchers the accent. As in, it's abysmal.

So there you go, my first proper review on this site, and it's about something that left me disappointed. But, in general, I love these recorded books and so I can't complain too much. This is a single one, compared to the twenty or so that I've adored.

Took me back to Paris

I don’t get the negative reviews. I loved each story and it instantly brought me back to Paris. I thought the narration was great and, especially appreciated the narrators French pronunciation, as so many narrators can absolutely butcher the language, which this narrator did not.
I will definitely listen to this again and recommend it for anyone who loves Paris, is interested in Paris or is a general Francophile.

ugh... another who hates all that isn't Paris.

another author who thinks Paris has everything and other cities have nothing. boring and uninspired, keep to your guiding...