New Releases by Peter Mayle

Une nouvelle édition de la trilogie best-seller du plus anglais des auteurs provençaux ! À Ménerbes, petit village du Luberon, la vie se poursuit sans beaucoup de changements pour Peter Mayle. Les us et coutumes des Provençaux sont encore obscurs et étonnants pour notre ancien publicitaire anglais. À la terrasse du Café du Progrès, au milieu des vignes ou sur les marchés aux truffes, des personnages réjouissants nous entraînent à la découverte des subtilités de leur région. Touchant parfois au conte, cette chronique est une succession de tableaux qui nous ramènent avec plaisir dans l''atmosphère d'' Une année en Provence.

Une nouvelle édition de la trilogie best-seller du plus anglais des auteurs provençaux ! Après avoir essayé de vivre ailleurs, Peter Mayle retrouve sa Provence bien-aimée. Il célèbre ce retour au pays en nous faisant participer à ses découvertes et en partageant avec nous sa science locale : un petit guide à l''usage de ceux qui ne connaissent pas Marseille, les caractéristiques du tire-bouchon idéal, les huit façons de passer un après-midi d''été... Grâce à lui, la Provence n''aura plus de secret pour ses lecteurs, même anglais ! Avec ce dernier tome de sa trilogie provençale, Peter Mayle nous fait encore une fois rire et voyager sous le soleil de Ménerbes...

The beloved author Peter Mayle, champion of all things Provence, here in a final volume of all-new writing, offers vivid recollections from his twenty-five years in the South of France: lessons learned, culinary delights enjoyed, and changes observed. Twenty-five years ago, Peter Mayle and his wife, Jennie, were rained out of a planned two weeks on the Côte d''Azur. In search of sunlight, they set off for Aix-en-Provence; enchanted by the world and life they found there, they soon decided to uproot their lives in England and settle in Provence. They have never looked back. As Mayle tells us, a cup of café might now cost three euros--but that price still buys you a front-row seat to the charming and indelible parade of village life. After the coffee, you might drive to see a lavender field that has bloomed every year for centuries, or stroll through the ancient history that coexists alongside Marseille''s metropolitan bustle. Modern life may have seeped into sleepy Provence, but its magic remains. With his signature warmth, wit, and humor--and twenty-five years of experience--Peter Mayle is a one-of-a-kind guide to the continuing appeal of Provence. This thoughtful, vivid exploration of life well-lived, à la Provence, will charm longtime fans and a new generation of readers alike.

When billionaire Francis Reboul finds himself on the wrong side of a Russian tycoon, he’s fortunate to have vacationing friends Sam Levitt and Elena Morales on hand to help him out. Now it’s up to Sam—who’s saved Reboul’s neck before—to negotiate with an underworld of mercenaries, hit men, and Mafioso, to prevent his friend from becoming a victim of “Russian diplomacy.” As usual, Sam and Elena still find time to enjoy the good life, but as Sam’s sleuthing draws him closer to the truth, he realizes Reboul might not be the only one in trouble. Rich with clever twists, sparkling scenery, and mouthwatering gustatory interludes as only Peter Mayle can write them, The Corsican Caper is an adventure par excellence.

Bon vivant and expert sleuth Sam Levitt and his partner in love and intrigue, Elena Morales, return in the latest installment of the delightfully sun-splashed Proven�al Caper series. When a Riviera socialite''s diamonds are stolen--the latest in a string of seemingly unconnected but ever-more-audacious jewelry heists across France--Elena flies in to investigate the insurance claim. It''s a trip she''s more than happy to make, as it gives her a chance to meet up with old friends in Marseille--and, particularly, with Sam. Once reunited, Sam isn''t entirely distracted by domestic matters. In the pattern of these "perfect crimes" he''s beginning to see a master at work, and he''s quickly determined to connect and solve the cases. But as he and Elena dig deeper, they begin to realize just how much is connected and how dangerous it may be to pursue the whole truth. Meanwhile, there''s a house to renovate, ros� to share, and feasts of Proven�al summer bounty to enjoy. Full of Peter Mayle''s inimitable wit and style, The Diamond Caper is sure to charm faithful fans and new readers alike.

No one knows Provence like beloved author Peter Mayle, and in this delightful collection—adapted from Provence A-Z: A Francophile’s Essential Handbook—he distills his decades of living in France into ten essential lessons for visitors. Abandoning the well-trodden “best of” routes that can be found in any tourist guide, Mayle highlights local features vital to an authentic Provençal experience. From ruminations on the unique charms of each season to the art of the siesta, Mayle brings the warmth and beauty of the province vividly to life. And, of course, food and wine also get their due, as Mayle expounds the merits of pastis and a good rosé, explores the mystery of traditional market shopping, and more. Evocative and intimate, Provence in Ten Easy Lessons is charming yet practical reading for ticketed passengers and armchair travelers, alike. An eBook short.

Bennett is an English expatriate living in France with a champagne taste and a beer bankroll. Happy-go-lucky and a bit roguish, he places an ad in the International Herald Tribune offering his services -- any services. He pursues a response from a wealthy Englishman named Julian Poe who has developed a means of producing truffles and is close to cornering the immensely lucrative truffle market. Bennett signs on and finds himself in Monaco, where he is able to live in a style to which he has always wished to become accustomed (including eating to his heart''s content -- a Mayle trademark!). Soon the Sicilian and Corsican Mafiosi intrude and Bennett is joined by the beautiful and experienced (in all ways) Anna. Ham-fisted goons, gendarmes working at cross purposes, French village busybodies, and an order of monks dedicated to the god Bacchus all play a role in the surprising, and more than a little satisfying, denouement.

Once upon a time in Provence, Peter Mayle adopted a dog of uncertain origins and dubious hunting skills and gave him a name—Boy. Now he gives this canny canine a voice in an irresistible “memoir” that proves that the best vantage point for observing life may well be on all fours. As Boy recounts his progress from an overcrowded maternal bosom to unchallenged mastery of the Mayle household, he tells us why dogs are drawn to humans (“our most convenient support system”) and chickens (“that happy combination of sport and nourishment”). We share in his amorous dalliances, his run-ins with French plumbers and cats, and in the tidbits (both conversational and edible) of his owners’ dinner parties. Enhanced by fifty-nine splendidly whimsical drawings by Edward Koren, A Dog’s Life gives us all the delights we expect from any book by Peter Mayle—pedigree prose, biting wit, and a keen nose for the fragrance of civilization—together with the insouciant wisdom of which only a dog (and probably only Peter Mayle’s dog) is capable.

In his most delightful foray into the wonders of Provençal life, Peter Mayle returns to France and puts behind him cholesterol worries, shopping by phone, California wines, and other concerns that plagued him after too much time away. In Encore Provence, Mayle gives us a glimpse into the secrets of the truffle trade, a parfumerie lesson on the delicacies of scent, an exploration of the genetic effects of 2,000 years of foie gras, and a small-town murder mystery that reads like the best fiction. Here, too, are Mayle''s latest tips on where to find the best honey, cheese, or chambre d''hìte the region has to offer. Lyric, insightful, sparkling with detail, Encore Provence brings us a land where the smell of thyme in the fields or the glory of a leisurely lunch is no less than inspiring.

A beguiling novel of romance, adventure, and tongue-in-cheek suspense set in the South of France, from the beloved, best-selling author of A Year in Provence. Simon Shaw, a rumpled, fortyish English advertising executive, has decided to leave it all behind, and heads of to France to transform an abandoned police station in the Lubéron into a small but world-class hotel. On his side, Simon has a loyal majordomo and a French business partner who is as practical as she is ravishing. But he hasn’t counted on the malignant local journalist—or on the mauvaise types who have chosen the neighboring village as the site of their latest bank robbery. Slyly funny and overflowing with sensuous descriptions of the good life, Hotel Pastis is the literacy equivalent of a four-star restaurant.

Lovable rogue and sleuth extraordinaire Sam Levitt is back in another beguiling, as-only-Peter-Mayle-can-write-it romp through the South of France. At the end of The Vintage Caper, Sam had just carried off a staggering feat of derring-do in the heart of Bordeaux, infiltrating the ranks of the French elite to rescue a stolen, priceless wine collection. With the questionable legality of the adventure—and the threat of some very powerful enemies!—Sam thought it’d be a while before he returned to France, especially with the charms of the beautiful Elena Morales to keep him in Los Angeles. But when the immensely wealthy Francis Reboul—the victim of Sam’s last heist but someone who knows talent when he sees it—asks our hero to take a job in Marseille, it’s impossible for Sam and Elena to resist the possibility of further excitement . . . to say nothing of the pleasures of the region. Soon the two are enjoying the coastal sunshine and the delectable food and wine for which Marseille is known. Yet as a competition over Marseille’s valuable waterfront grows more hotly disputed, Sam, representing Reboul, finds himself in the middle of an increasingly intrigue-ridden and dangerous real-estate grab, with thuggish gangsters on one side and sharklike developers on the other. Will Sam survive this caper unscathed? Will he live to enjoy another bowl of bouillabaisse? All will be revealed—with luck, savvy, and a lot of help from Sam’s friends—in the novel’s wonderfully satisfying climax.

Ci riusciva difficile associare l''idea di un primo gennaio, che pure tutti ci assicuravano normalissimo, con quel sole e quel cielo di un azzurro intenso. Dopo tutto, però, eravamo in Provenza. C''eravamo stati più volte da turisti, insoddisfatti della nostra razione annuale di due o tre settimane di caldo e di luce brillante. Ogni volta, andandocene col naso spellato e con molto rimpianto, ci ripromettevamo di venire, prima o poi, a vivere qui. Ne avevamo discorso durante inverni lunghi e grigi, o verdi e umide estati, riguardando con un sospiro di nostalgia le foto dei mercatini di paese o dei vigneti, sognando di essere svegliati da un sole abbagliante attraverso i vetri delle finestre della camera da letto. E ora, quasi con nostra sorpresa, c''eravamo buttati nell''impresa, avevamo comprato una casa, preso lezioni di francese, detto addio agli amici, avevamo imbarcato i nostri due cani ed eravamo diventati degli stranieri.

A globetrotting detective story, filled with the culinary delights and entertaining characters from the national bestselling author of A Year in Provence and our most treasured chronicler of French life. “Wine and food aficionados will find much to savor.... Light, funny, and packed with a menu’s worth of scrumptious descriptions of exceptional dinners and drinks.” —USA Today The Vintage Caper begins high above Los Angeles with a world-class heist at the impressive wine cellar of lawyer Danny Roth. Enter Sam Levitt, former lawyer and wine connoisseur, who follows leads to Bordeaux and Provence. The unraveling of the ingenious crime is threaded through with Mayle’s seductive renderings of France’s sensory delights—from a fine Lynch-Bages to the bouillabaisse of Marseille—guaranteed to charm and inform even the most sophisticated palates.

Gastronomy is a wonderful starting point to study France and the French. As the retired schoolmaster from Provence says ''The religion of France is food. And wine, of course.'' And they put their money where their mouth is, spending a greater proportion of their income on food and drink than any other nation in the world. Literally hundreds of gastronomic fairs and festivals take place throughout the year all over France - a frog fair, an hommage to the sausage, to the turnip, to the quiche and the noble Camembert. What kind of person is a snail-fancier? Is there a brotherhood of sausage connoisseurs? How can you devote an entire weekend to the French fry? Peter Mayle finds out and brings hilariously and affectionately to life the people who can get passionate about a frog''s leg or a well-turned omelette. Over ten years ago he transformed our feelings about Provence, now he captures the irresistible essence of France herself - and her food.

The ultimate “dictionary” for lovers of Provence: Peter Mayle''s personal selection of the foods, customs and words he finds most fascinating, curious, delicious, or just plain fun. Though organized from A to Z, this is hardly a conventional work of reference. In more than 170 entries, Peter Mayle—bestselling author of A Year in Provence—writes about subjects as wide-ranging as architecture and zingue-zingue-zoun (in the local patois, a word meant to describe the sound of a violin). And, of course, he writes about food and drink: vin rosé, truffles, olives, melons, bouillabaisse, the cheese that killed a Roman emperor, even a cure for indigestion. Provence A-Z is a delight for Peter Mayle''s ever-growing audience and the perfect complement to any guidebook on Provence, or, for that matter, France.

There is a bakery in the town of Cavaillon where the baking & appreciation of breads ¿had been elevated to the status of a minor religion.¿ Its name: Chez Auzet. Now, Mayle & Auzet, the proprietor of this bakery, tell us about breadmaking at its finest. They takes us into the baking room to witness the birth of a loaf. We see the master at work -- slapping, rolling, squeezing, folding, & twisting dough as he sculpts it into different kinds of bread. Includes precise, beautifully illustrated instructions for making 16 kinds of bread, from the classic baguette to loaves made with such ingredients as apricots, hazelnuts, garlic, & green & black olives. Tricks of the trade are revealed, & along the way Mayle relates the delightful history of four generations of Auzet bakers.

A delightful, best-selling tale about the business and pleasure of wine, adapted into a Ridley Scott movie starring Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard. Max Skinner has recently lost his job at a London financial firm and just as recently learned that he has inherited his late uncle’s vineyard in Provence. On arrival he finds the climate delicious, the food even better, and two of the locals ravishing. Unfortunately, the wine produced on his new property is swill. Why then are so many people interested in it? Enter a beguiling Californian who knows more about wine than Max does—and may have a better claim to the estate. Fizzy with intrigue, bursting with local color and savor, A Good Year is Peter Mayle, beloved author of A Year in Provence, at his most entertaining.

A delightful, delicious, and best-selling account of the gustatory pleasures to be found throughout France, from the beloved author of A Year in Provence. The French celebrate food and drink more than any other people, and Peter Mayle shows us just how contagious their enthusiasm can be. We visit the Foire aux Escargots. We attend a truly French marathon, where the beverage of choice is Château Lafite-Rothschild rather than Gatorade. We search out the most pungent cheese in France, and eavesdrop on a heated debate on the perfect way to prepare an omelet. We even attend a Catholic mass in the village of Richerenches, a sacred event at which thanks are given for the aromatic, mysterious, and breathtakingly expensive black truffle. With Mayle as our charming guide, we come away satisfied (if a little hungry), and with a sudden desire to book a flight to France at once.

Gastronomy is a wonderful starting point to study France and the French. As the retired schoolmaster from Provence says ''The religion of France is food. And wine, of course.'' And they put their money where their mouth is, spending a greater proportion of their income on food and drink than any other nation in the world. Literally hundreds of gastronomic fairs and festivals take place throughout the year all over France - a frog fair, an hommage to the sausage, to the turnip, to the quiche and the noble Camembert. What kind of person is a snail-fancier? Is there a brotherhood of sausage connoisseurs? How can you devote an entire weekend to the French fry? Peter Mayle finds out and brings hilariously and affectionately to life the people who can get passionate about a frog''s leg or a well-turned omelette. Over ten years ago he transformed our feelings about Provence, now he captures the irresistible essence of France herself - and her food.

For more than twenty years, the internationally bestselling team behind Where Did I Come From? has helped millions of parents and children talk about the facts of life in a straightforward yet lighthearted way that is respectful of young people’s natural intelligence. Warmly and relatably illustrated throughout, What’s Happening to Me? creates a safe space where families can talk about the physical and emotional changes that happen during puberty and adolescence, answering the questions that kids ask most often. Why is my chest getting bumpy? What''s a wet dream? What''s a period? Why is my voice acting so funny? Why do I get pimples? What''s an erection? Why am I getting hairy? Why is mine not like his? This book answers the big questions, and explains the big changes. One look at the illustrations will tell you that this is not a dull medical textbook but rather it presents the facts of puberty, and it presents them with honesty, sympathy and a sense of humor. If you’ve been wondering how to have this talk with your children, look no further for a trusted resource that will give you the tools you need to share this critical information sensitively and factually. “You can''t deny Mayle''s talent for translating adult experience into child-level concepts.” —Kirkus Reviews

A humorous survival guide for the first time father including the pregnant father''s cookbook.

A photographer on a visit to a house featured in a magazine he works for, discovers that a Cezanne painting has been stolen from there. With the editor of the magazine as the suspect thief, he is sent on pursuit of her and the Cezanne through London, the South of France and New York.

Describes the reproductive process from intercourse to birth.

A boxed set containing Mayle''s best-selling A Year in Provence and Toujours Provence offers a colorful study of the people, landscapes, and life-styles of Provence. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.