Janice MacLeod

This was an interesting mix of love story and quitting a life, and I very much enjoyed it. As a romance reader, it was fascinating to see a real life romance initially based solely on attraction since neither spoke the other’s language; I guess this is how people can fall in love, but it was definitely something new to me. The author got the Etsy dream back when it was still viable a decade ago and managed to create a life as an artist. It all seems a bit too perfect, but I’m rather jaded so oh well good for her.… (mere)

audio nonfiction, memoirs (34-y.o. Canadian copywriter from CA who mostly writes spam mail decides to quit her job in favor of living out a suitcase and spending time abroad as a travel/art blogger)
The author strikes me as naive in general, not to mention foolish to not be concerned about her retirement savings (does she even have retirement savings? what about health care?), but I did appreciate the part where she gets rid of all her excess possessions before she packs her bags for Paris. Fortunately things seem to have worked out ok for her--handsome boyfriend/husband and successful etsy subscription service). I think the print edition probably is more enjoyable because you don't have the narrator's annoyingly perky voice and you get to see the artwork.… (mere)

A really sweet book about the author's life in Paris, with her own watercolor drawings and interesting little facts about the city. I thought this might be a light fluffy coffee table book with tired clichés about the city (and to be honest, that does happen sometimes), but it's really much more personal. You can tell the author spent a lot of time trying to make it unique, and while it's not a guide book, she does give advice and information that I haven't encountered in other books about the city. It's the kind of book you would be fake happy to receive as a Christmas present, but then be surprised to find that it's quite good. I recommend it.… (mere)