We Could Almost Eat Outside: An Appreciation of Life's Small Pleasures

If you have read 'Joie De Vivre' by Robert Arbor and enjoyed the concentration to detail and the concept of savoring those things which we identify with our lifestyles, you will definitely want to pick up Philippe Delerm's little book of small thoughts associated with moments in his life. If you have read Clower's "Fat Fallacy" and are intrigued with the French diet and its supposed inconsistancies with current nutritional advice, after reading "We Could Almost Eat Outside", you will perhaps understand better the concept of small bites full of flavor that stay with you and rekindle memories from childhood and other stages of life. Think the anticipation on Christmas morning or the anticipated crack of freshness in the air after a new snow and comprehension will dawn -- its not the food (or whatever) its the emotion it evokes. Delerm writes down his memories about objects and moments in time, that some readers will find difficult to relate to only because they are seemingly specific to the French culture. However, if you eliminate the brand names and the high-speed trains, these simple poetic essays will trigger Proustian thoughts in your own mind and you will seek out your own croissant eaten in the street and your own taste of Turkish Delight purchased in a bag and not a box. Thoughtfully and beautifully rendered. If you can, read it in its original language.

This slim volume offers up simple wisdoms of life. Translated from the French, there are very few things that do not universallly carry over into my American sensibilities. Each brief essay presents one of the small and simple pleasures of life....driving at night, autumn sweaters, picking blackberries, the first sip of beer, and hearing a loved one's voice over the phone, among others. The essays on ordering and eating a banana split and paperweights are priceless. The insight offered..that we perch on the brim of possibility, the "make-believe world pitted against the real world" awaiting our decisions While this book points out the obvious, it is never too sweet or cloying. The use of language and phrasing is beautiful, the imagery it conjures up is a joy to read. I marked many of the pages, so I could find the wonderful phrases which caught my attention and imagination. This is a writer of rare talent. This is a book I will read over and often.

If you are looking for a light but meaningful book you can read over and over, this is the right book you're looking for. Delerm's writing helps his readers explore the trivial but tender details in life, from a banana-split to reading on the beach; from a pullover in autumn to highway at night... he uses condensed language to depict some trinket but magical moments in ordinary living. You won't regret it.