French women didn't invent happiness. But they know a thing or two about joie de vivre--being alive to each delicious moment. As a young girl, Jamie Cat Callan was fascinated by her French grandmother. Though she had little money, Jamie's grand-mère ate well, dressed well, and took joy in simple, everyday pleasures. As Jamie journeyed through France as an adult, she gained more insight into the differences between French and American women. French women--whether doctors, shop owners, or housewives--don't worry about being thin enough, young enough, or accomplished enough. They age gracefully and celebrate their bodies. They know how to balance their lives--to love food without overeating, to work hard but not too much, to relish friends and family, and still make time for themselves. Now Jamie draws on everything French women have taught her and shows you how to: Buy and consume less--and enjoy more Look like a million Euros on a few francs Find time to be alone Flirt à la française Rediscover your own mystery Perfection isn't attainable, but happiness always is. And this uplifting, revelatory book shows every woman how to embrace it--and savor it.

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 In America, we are entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. In France, the equivalent expression is la recherche du bonheur. In France, happiness is not something you can truly own. It is something that is already within you, and it’s simply a matter of choosing to embrace the simple beauties of life. #2 The concept of joie de vivre is related to optimism about your life and the ability to enjoy what you have without worrying too much about what you don’t. It is about finding joy in the everyday. #3 I once visited the small town of Gien with my husband. We stayed at a resort hotel, and while my husband was having a discussion on uranium series carbon dating with a couple of scientists from Great Britain, I heard the sounds of music and went to find it. I found myself in the social room, dancing with a French man. #4 The French word for happiness is bonheur, which literally means a good hour or good time. It’s a moment that can never be repeated. Dancing captures this feeling beautifully because it involves all the senses.

The author of Bonjour, Happiness! offers a revealing foray into French femininity with beauty and style secrets from the women of Paris and beyond. French women seem to have a special knack for life's most important things—food, love, raising children. And in matters of beauty and style, they appear to be at an unfair advantage. But the truth is that French women are not born more attractive than anyone else—and everything they know can be learned. French women learn at a young age how to feel beautiful, confident, and sexy, inside and out. It's an allure that outlasts youth—in fact, some of France's most celebrated women are femmes d'un certain âge. Growing up, Jamie Cat Callan had a French grand-mère to instruct her on style, grooming, and genuinely liking her reflection in the mirror. Now she shares that wisdom along with advice from other French women on fragrance, image consulting, makeup, and more. “This charming foray into French femininity will make a perfect cadeau for any Francophile lady.” —Publishers Weekly

When the best option is to let go of the life you planned for yourself and find a new path, a world of possibilities can surprisingly open up. Learn whether it is time to let go, and if so, how to move through your grief and find your way forward in The Next Happy. If you believe, you can do anything. Although well-meaning, these intended words of inspiration can make us feel like failures. The reality is that no matter how positive our outlook or how tenacious our approach, our dreams simply do not always come true--and there is nothing we can do about it. After multiple fertility treatments and years of hardship in her pursuit to have a child, Tracey Cleantis was forced to face this reality head-on. Yet, through this process and her work counseling hundreds of clients through the loss of their goals and aspirations, she discovered one simple truth: Sometimes there comes a time when the smartest, healthiest, and sanest thing to do is to let go of the original plan in order to find a new way forward toward happiness. And with this critical shift, a world of possibilities opens up to us. New, tangible dreams take shape. In The Next Happy, Cleantis offers a roadmap for that journey, teaching you how to: face the possibility of letting go of a dream that isn’t working; accept and face sadness, anger, and shame; understand the true reasons why you wanted what you wanted and the real-life causes for why you didn’t get it; and ask the questions that will let you move on and set realistic goals for finding a new way forward. With down-to-earth wisdom and humor, this enlightening counterpoint to the popular self-help notion to “follow your dream, no matter what it takes” provides the guidance and support to help you make the decision of whether it is time to give up an impossible dream, and if so, move through your grief, and discover the next happy.

“Groskop skillfully juggles memoir, biography, philosophy, and literary criticism to create a delightful tour through some of French literature’s greats.” —Madeline Miller, New York Times–bestselling author Like many people the world over, Viv Groskop wishes she was a little more French. A writer, comedian, and journalist, Groskop studied the language obsessively starting at age 11, and spent every vacation in France, desperate to escape her Englishness and to have some French chic rub off on her. In Au Revoir, Tristesse, Groskop mixes literary history and memoir to explore how the classics of French literature can infuse our lives with joie de vivre and teach us how to say goodbye to sadness. From the frothy hedonism of Colette and the wit of Cyrano de Bergerac to the intoxicating universe of Marguerite Duras and the heady passions of Les Liaisons dangereuses, this is a love letter to great French writers. With chapters on Marcel Proust, Victor Hugo, Gustave Flaubert, Stendhal, Honoré de Balzac, Albert Camus, and of course Françoise Sagan, this is a delectable read for book lovers everywhere. “Ms. Groskop is a skilled raconteuse who brings people—and the page—to life. She writes with a self-deprecating appreciation of the Frenchman or -woman manqué(e) that lurks in us all. You don’t have to be a savant to enjoy this book . . . Au Revoir, Tristesse will make a witty, seductive companion.” —The Wall Street Journal “Groskop’s combination of her own memories, what the novels meant to her at different stages in her life, her description of the authors, along with her description of the novels, will have readers eagerly turning the book’s pages.” —Forbes

Bismark Pacheco, descended from the Bri Bri Indians, and trained as a guerilla fighter in the Nicaraguan civil war by operatives of the United States Central Intelligence Agency, goes to work for the Costa Rican Ministry of Justice after graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point. Pacheco soon becomes the premier crime detective in the land. Pacheco’s fame is so great, and his reputation so secure that he is hailed as a national hero by campesinos throughout the hills and valleys of the troubled but striving country.Inspector Pacheco is called to investigate a murder at the Center for Tropical Agriculture (The CAT) on the Atlantic slope of Costa Rica where he finds an international web of intrigue that tests the limits of his skills. The trail leads through a baseball factory, into the green hills and high meadows of a dormant tropical volcano, through the luxuriant vegetation of a valley where tropical fruits and nuts abound, where sugarcane, bananas, coffee, and cocoa grow the year round, and where exotic and colorful birds are distracted by the nectar of ever present gardenia, bougainvillea, and orchid.In this idyllic setting, where Toucan-Grackle fights top the disturbance list, eight more violent deaths are recorded as Pacheco’s investigation proceeds, and Pacheco himself is threatened. Pacheco contemplates the comfort of frontier justice when he weighs his knowledge of the Costa Rican court system against the depth of the villainy he uncovers.

As seen in The New York Times -- discover what French women know about embracing that irresistible joie de vivre We all know that French women don't get fat. But their famous je ne sais quoi comes from more than just body type--something anyone can master: the old-fashioned art cultivating our inner beauty, confidence, and unique personal style, at any age. From savoring the everyday beauty around you to engaging in captivating conversations, playing dress-up, hosting impromptu dinner parties under the stars, and of course mastering the art of French flirting, the lively and inspiring lessons in this “syllabus” will help you rediscover your beautiful, fierce, romantic, engaging best self—to attract the best of everything into your life. Ready to embark on the adventure of your life? Parisian Charm School is in session….