Book description
In this poignant, delicious memoir, American tax preparer and food writer Steve Hoffman tells the story of how he and his family move to the French countryside, where the locals upend everything he knows about food, wine, and learning how to belong. Steve Hoffman is a perfectly comfortable middle-aged Minnesotan man who has always been desperately, pretentiously in love with France, more specifically with the idea of France. To follow that love, he and his family move, nearly at random, to the small, rural, scratchy-hot village of Autignac in the south of the country, and he immediately thinks he's made a terrible mistake. Life here is not holding your cigarette chest-high while walking to the café and pulling off the trick of pretending to be Parisian, it's getting into fights with your wife because you won't break character and introduce your very American family to the locals, who can smell you and your perfect city-French from a mile away. But through cooking what the local grocer tells him to cook, he feels more of this place. A neighbor leads him into the world of winemaking, where he learns not as a pedantic oenophile, but bodily, as a grape picker and winemaker's apprentice. Along the way, he lets go of the abstract ideas he'd held about France, discovering instead the beauty of a culture that is one with its landscape, and of becoming one with that culture.
About the Author
Steve Hoffman shares one acre on Turtle Lake, in Shoreview, Minnesota, with his family, an ill-behaved puggle, and roughly 80,000 honeybees. He is a writer, tax preparer, and occasional French villager. He is the winner of the M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award at the James Beard Awards, as well as an IACP Bert Greene Award for narrative culinary writing and five Association of Food Journalism awards.
King Panther
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Foot-long Fry
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Acetic Princess
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Good William
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Granola Dove
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Midas
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ChatterChampion
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Domino
This app has transformed my screen time into valuable learning and entertainment. Audiobook pleasure simplified – this app's design is a true winner.
Swedish Pixie
I'm addicted to the personalized recommendations – it's like the app knows me! The ease of downloading content via WiFi, WebDAV, and more has made ListenBook my audiobook hub. ListenBook has redefined how I enjoy audiobooks. It's an essential tool for my literary pursuits. Adjustable playback speed and volume controls are fantastic features. Perfect for repeat listening! The narrator's performance was so rich with detail that I'm sure I'll discover new layers on a second listen. Their interpretation felt authentic to the material while bringing fresh insights. The audio production was pristine from start to finish.
FRMhndshk
This app's convenience has turned me into an avid audiobook listener. With this app, every moment is an opportunity to dive into a new story. ListenBook’s interface is beautiful and functional. It’s my favorite app for audiobooks.
White Swan
The variety of narrators adds a unique touch to each book, making every experience special. I'm able to enjoy books in a whole new way – while cooking, working out, or even gardening. ListenBook's audio filters and controls have turned my listening sessions into immersive experiences. ListenBook has become my workout companion. It keeps me engaged and entertained during exercise.
ReiGnZ
This app's convenience has made reading a priority in my busy schedule. ListenBook's dedication to providing an exceptional listening experience shines through in every aspect of the app. Sharing audiobooks via AirDrop is incredibly convenient. Great feature! Auto-rewind is a very handy feature. Excellent app. I love the ability to change the background color. It’s a nice touch.
MuseMaster
With this app, audiobook listening has become a convenient and enjoyable part of my everyday life. I can't get enough of this app's user-friendly interface – it's a true delight. The statistics tracking feature is eye-opening. I never realized how much time I spend on audiobooks until now!
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Cowboy Booter
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Playing a wide variety of audio formats
Works on all devices with iOS 13 and newer
Huge amount of features for a small price
Frequent updates to add new features and improve existing ones
Advanced playback controls
Live sound processing
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice and noise reduction
Translated into more than 20 languages
If you love listening to fiction audiobooks, ListenBook has features to make the process easier.
Edit book data: title, author, cover
Use equalizer to make the sound comfortable for you
Adjust the playback speed
Enjoy dark and light app themes
Supported formats: MP3, M4B, AWB, FLAC, OGG audio files and many more (must be DRM free)
Auto-Bookmarks make it easy to find your place
AirPlay support allows redirection of audio output.
VoiceOver support
Dark mode for night owls
Convenient bookmarking system helps you mark the most important places.
Unlimited bookmarks for each audiobook
Put your own cover on the wager
Share your audiobook with friends
Lock-screen control
Customise app with extensive options
Sleep timer with shake to reset, set custom notification sounds, and a few unique options
Auto rewind depending on paused time, customize rewind times to your liking
Removing background noise from recordings made in classrooms and meetings
Changing the timbre of the reader's voice for a better listening experience