Flaneuse
Women Walk the City in Paris, New York, Tokyo, Venice and London
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
*Shortlisted for the PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay*
Selected as a Book of the Year 2016 by the Financial Times, Guardian, New Statesman, Observer, The Millions and Emerald Street
'Flâneuse [flanne-euhze], noun, from the French. Feminine form of flâneur [flanne-euhr], an idler, a dawdling observer, usually found in cities.
That is an imaginary definition.'
If the word flâneur conjures up visions of Baudelaire, boulevards and bohemia – then what exactly is a flâneuse?
In this gloriously provocative and celebratory book, Lauren Elkin defines her as ‘a determined resourceful woman keenly attuned to the creative potential of the city, and the liberating possibilities of a good walk’. Part cultural meander, part memoir, Flâneuse traces the relationship between the city and creativity through a journey that begins in New York and moves us to Paris, via Venice, Tokyo and London, exploring along the way the paths taken by the flâneuses who have lived and walked in those cities.
From nineteenth-century novelist George Sand to artist Sophie Calle, from war correspondent Martha Gellhorn to film-maker Agnes Varda, Flâneuse considers what is at stake when a certain kind of light-footed woman encounters the city and changes her life, one step at a time.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Actor Craden contributes a sprightly reading to the enjoyable audio edition of Elkin's book, which blends memoir with history and cultural criticism. The narrative recounts Elkin's research and travels following in the footsteps of several female creative geniuses who explored major cities of the world, gaining freedom and confidence through their peregrinations. Much of the book is Elkin's memoirs of her own experiences wandering and living in five cities, and Craden successfully stands in for the author; she gamely captures the book's overall tone, which is both sophisticated and youthful. She also uses a convincing French accent, which is valuable for the sections on artist Sophie Calle (b. 1953) and writer George Sand (1804 1876). Less successful is the stilted, not-quite-British voice she uses when quoting Virginia Woolf (1882 1941). It sounds awkward and self-conscious, which is ironic because the book is about women shedding convention and gaining independence and confidence. This misstep aside, the audiobook makes for an enjoyable nine hours of listening time, perfectly suited for traveling listeners who are embarking on a journey of their own. A Farrar, Straus and Giroux paperback.
