Dimensions
127 x 181 x 17mm
Through a lively blend of memoirs, reminiscences, and modern day adventure, John Baxter takes us into the heart of Paris during The Great War.
One of the most fascinating periods in the city's history, 1914-18 saw the citizens of France under constant threat of German invasion, leading them to live like there was no tomorrow. Tracing the experiences of his own grandfather - an Australian serviceman who found himself in Paris in 1914 - Baxter explores firsthand the mythology of the period, researching the cafes these young men would have frequented, the romances they might have had, and the transformative mix of fear and freedom among the people that gave rise to the France of modern day.
PARIS AT THE END OF THE WORLD tells the story of this change from both sides - that of the young soldiers who came to France, and of the Parisians who awaited them. For the French, 1914 meant getting some pleasure from drinking the last of the wine before facing the reality of war and the modern world. For the foreigners, who had never drank wine before, the experience left them transformed, and able to enter the post-war world transformed.