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Why French Women Are Better Than Vous!

April 2, 2012 By: Nada Manley1 Comment

I grew up buying into the mystique of the French woman, the belief that they possessed – and please forgive the obvious phrasing here – a certain je ne sais quoi. But now that I have reached what those alluring women call un certain age, I’m starting to see the fabled mystique for what it is: a chic, charming, yet no less evil ploy to undermine the self-esteem of every woman in the entire world without Gallic blood running through her veins. Could it really be that God, in His infinite wisdom, really decided that all fabulousness and fashion sense should be concentrated in the size of a country slightly smaller than the state of Texas. Mais non! 
Lest you think I am immune to the charms of Paris and its people, I offer several, excellent examples of why this is untrue:
  1.  I was a French/Political Science major in college.
  2. I am teaching French to my own bebes, and even lead a semiregular French playgroup.
  3.  I prematurely took my then 2 year old and 4 year old on a Parisian vacation two summers ago, with the intention of improving their French (see numero deux)
  4. I hosted a lovely French au pair, Adeline, in my home for a year shortly after the birth of my youngest daughter, the Pipsqueak. And I have French friends.
  5. Baguettes are like a drug to me. I like them better than anything. And I like other French-y things, like macarons and creme brulee. And fromage.
  6. I wear a ring, that I bought myself and never take off – a simple sterling silver band imprinted with one word – maman.
Clearly, I adore France and the French. But that doesn’t mean I am prepared to secede to them in the art of living well. As the latest in a long line of books would have us believe, French women have Americans beat in everything from staying svelte and stylish to being a blissed-out mama. A few examples…
The book that started it all!

The book that started it all!

1. French Women Don’t Get Fat, by Mireille Guiliano: The book that started it all. Mireille, who, as her clearly Frencher-than-yours name implies, is French, and thin. And here is her secret: eating for pleasure. It’s right there on the book. If you take the time to savor that soupcon of cheese (don’t know if the usage is correct here, but oh well!) with your half an apple, you too can be full on next to no food. Hmmph! And now Mme. Guiliano has written another treatise, this one even more humbling than the last: Women, Work & The Art of Savoir Faire. Double hmmph! (I am not picking on you, Mireille, as it’s obvious you are a lovely woman. Just speaking up for my stateside sisters). Naturally, there’s been some intriguing backlash: Mediterranean Women Stay Slim, Too, by Melissa Kelly, Simon Doonan’s Gay Men Don’t Get Fat (ha!) and my fave: Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat by Naomi Moriyama.

I fall for every parenting book. Especially French ones.

2. Bringing Up Bebe: One American Woman Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting, by Pamela Druckerman: Et tu, Pamela? So not only are we are not thin enough or stylish enough, but Pamela makes a case for why we are also bad mothers. Be right back…. Sorry – I had to slip Eva a lollipop to keep her from screaming herself to sleep. 😉 Where was I? Oh yes, American women are amazing mothers!

I found my inner French girl! And then I lost her again. It’s so hard to be charmant all of the time.

3. Entre Nous: A Woman’s Guide to Finding her Inner French Girl, by Debra Olivier: My fellow Francophile (and French major) friend Erin gave me this enticing read, which spills the secrets on French style. Not that I’m interested or anything. Because even though I don’t have Monoprix, Jacadi, Du Pareil Au Meme, Bonpoint, Deux Par Deux, and Tartine et Chocolat merely steps from my chic pied a terre, like I had for a few blissful weeks in Paris, I am fine with it. Target is great. Really.

Love this book. Love Karen. Wish my girls liked coconut sprinkled on their oranges. That is all.

4. French Kids Eat Everything, by Karen Le Billon: Like Olivier, above, Le Billon is an Americaine married to a Frenchman who moved to Paris and saw the light. It doesn’t come out until Tuesday, but I admit I am more than a little intrigued. Le Billon claims to spill the secrets as to why, in France, les petits regularly sit down to very un-kid-friendly meals of salade and stinky cheese. When we were there, my kids subsisted largely on baguettes. Much like their maman. Read my interview with Karen Le Billon here).

Have you read any of these books? Which sounds most intriguing to you?

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Comments

  1. Nelly says

    April 2, 2012 at 1:36 pm

    That was hilarious! And I agree, of course. 🙂 But I think I may need to read all those books, anyway!

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