Learning to be French (and Failing)

Anna Bibby owned a successful art gallery in New Zealand until one day, on holiday in France, she bought a falling-down house in a picturesque medieval village.

So began the process of renovating her beautiful old house which, of course, wasn’t without its issues and roadblocks. Anna didn’t speak the language, she didn’t know anyone and her understanding of French culture was limited.

Despite all this she managed to find artisans to help, she survived the brutal winter in the unrenovated house and the locals took her under their wing.

Anna tells her story in a humorous, warm and generous way. She takes a real delight in the place she has found herself in. She has an ongoing relationship with a handsome Portuguese stonemason, doomed attempts at cooking French food and she blithely blunders into local French culture, with amusing results.

Beautifully illustrated with gorgeous photography, this is both an engaging read and also a beautiful book to pore over and dream of your own European adventures.

Author Biography

Anna Bibby was born in Wellington. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Elam School of Fine Arts at the University of Auckland, then gained a teaching diploma. She worked as an exhibitions officer at Hawke’s Bay Art Museum & Gallery in Napier, then at the Govett-Brewster Gallery in New Plymouth. From 1991 to 1995 she was the director of Claybrook Gallery, then Anna Bibby Gallery in Parnell, Auckland. In 2010 she moved to France, where she now lives in the Gironde.