Manual of St. Germain des Pres
By Boris Vian
1974
First Published
3.58
Average Rating
224
Number of Pages
Complemented by two hundred evocative period photographs, an English translation of the classic account of Paris in the 1950s explores the left bank cafes, galleries, underground jazz clubs, theaters, and salons that were home to the existentialist and post-surrealistic circles of the era, with portraits of Jean Cocteau, Jean Genet, Miles Davis, and more.
Avg Rating
3.58
Number of Ratings
102
5 STARS
20%
4 STARS
30%
3 STARS
40%
2 STARS
8%
1 STARS
2%
goodreads
Author
Boris Vian
Author · 29 books
Boris Vian was a French polymath: writer, poet, musician, singer, translator, critic, actor, inventor and engineer. He is best remembered for novels such as L’Écume des jours and L'Arrache-cœur (translated into English as Froth on the Daydream and Heartsnatcher, respectively). He is also known for highly controversial "criminal" fiction released under the pseudonym Vernon Sullivan and some of his songs (particularly the anti-war Le Déserteur). Vian was also fascinated with jazz: he served as liaison for, among others, Duke Ellington and Miles Davis in Paris, wrote for several French jazz-reviews (Le Jazz Hot, Paris Jazz) and published numerous articles dealing with jazz both in the United States and in France.
