Every Tuesday,
Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea
posts the first paragraph of her current read.
Anyone can join in.
Click on the logo to link your post.
Sharing here the first paragraph of a book
in the Completed Tours category.
French Illusions:
My Story as an American Au Pair
in the Loire Valley
(Memoir, narrative non-fiction)
Release date: October 3, 2012
at Dreamland Press
275 pages
ISBN: 978-0988464018
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WHAT DO YOU THINK?
WOULD YOU KEEP READING?
January 5, 2016
WordsAndPeace
France Book Tours 
32 responses to “First Chapter First Paragraph — French Illusions”
Nise' (Under the Boardwalk)
January 5th, 2016 at 18:50
My daughter had a couple of friends that were au pairs in Europe. Enjoy the book.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:34
I sure hope it worked better for them than for Linda!
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 15:18
Bonjour. It’s always interesting to hear the stories of au pairs traveling abroad to work. No story is the same. Based on my diaries, the French Illusions Series recounts my adventures as a nanny and student in France in 1979 and 1980.
Diane
January 5th, 2016 at 18:17
Sounds like it has potential to be a good read. I hope you enjoy it.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:35
it’s good
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 15:12
Hi Diane. I’m pleased that you find my first paragraphs enticing. Authors want readers to turn the page, right?
WordsAndPeace
January 7th, 2016 at 14:40
and your first paragraph does grab the attention
Suzie Quint
January 5th, 2016 at 18:16
Yup, I’d keep reading. Love fish out of water stories.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:35
or in deep waters, lol!
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:36
I tried to click o the link to visit your blog, it says it no longer exists!?
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 15:10
Hi Suzie. What a great description. I was definitely a fish out of water. Regrettably, I pretended to speak basic French to acquire the job as an au pair. Young and foolish, I felt certain my new employer would forgive me for lying. As you can imagine, this caused a tremendous amount of friction.
Kay
January 5th, 2016 at 18:12
I like this and would like to find out what happens next. I can just see her with her suitcase and her high heels. LOL
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:36
things got tough!!
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 15:05
Hi Kay. Even after all these years (the scene is from 1979), I still remember that journey in the high heels. What a fool I was! These struggles were soon forgotten once I met my employer, Madame Dubois at Château de Montclair.
Beth F
January 5th, 2016 at 15:16
This looks fun! I’d keep reading.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:40
fun and tough too!
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:42
Beth, you might want to do some editing: your comment link goes to the old BLOB
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 15:00
Hi Beth. I’m pleased that you find my first paragraphs enticing. The story is based on my diaries from 1979 – the adventure of a lifetime!
Sandra Nachlinger
January 5th, 2016 at 15:00
Sounds fascinating. I’d love to see France in person, but will have to settle for a visit through someone else’s eyes for now.
My Tuesday post features JEWEL.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:42
same here, lol
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 14:58
Hi Sandra. I’m pleased that you find my first paragraphs fascinating. You can definitely visit the Loire Valley through my eyes, although it’ll be back in 1979. “Jewel” looks like a good read too!
Sarah's Book Shelves
January 5th, 2016 at 14:04
This one sounds like fun – I’d keep reading! I love those “behind the scenes” type books.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 20:45
and you definitely find out a lot here behind the scenes!
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 14:53
Bonjour Sarah. Thanks for your kind words. Yes, my memoir gives you a behind-the-scenes look at my life as an au pair in the Loire Valley in 1979. It didn’t work out quite as well as I’d hoped, but that’s what makes a good story, right?
Literary Feline
January 5th, 2016 at 11:53
I would be so lost if I traveled to a country where English wasn’t the primary language! And yet what fun it would be . . . This sounds like an interesting book. I hope you enjoy it!
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 13:05
it is interesting, the sequel too
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 14:50
Bonjour! Yes, I had quite an adventure when I was twenty-one. This was back in 1979 when traveling abroad for a job as an au pair was quite something. Thank goodness I kept a diary! It would have been a much harder book to write from memory alone.
laurelrainsnow
January 5th, 2016 at 11:29
Oh, what a fascinating journey this will be! Thanks for sharing, and I do want to know more. Here’s mine: “FLYING SHOES”
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 13:05
yes, quite an adventure!
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 6th, 2016 at 14:47
Hi Laurel. I’m tickled that you find my first paragraphs enticing. I’d love to hear from you if you read my memoir. I checked out “Flying Shoes.” That looks like a good read too 🙂
lindakovicskow@gmailcom
January 5th, 2016 at 10:23
Thanks for posting this, Emma. French Illusions: My Story as an American Au Pair in the Loire Valley, has had many edits over the years, but this first paragraph remained intact. I hope readers agree that it’s an enticing beginning to my memoir.
WordsAndPeace
January 5th, 2016 at 11:07
definitely enticing