A Waiter in Paris by Edward Chisholm: unashamedly inspired by Orwell and Bourdain, this immersive account of the dark side of Paris’ glamorous culinary scene was hard to put down.
I know that he basically ripped off Orwell, but I absolutely love Down and Out in Paris and London so this was perfect for me.
I was struck by how absolutely unhinged the writer was to put himself through this, he himself admits that he is a middle-class Englishman with a university degree who could have done something else with his life. After all, the book is set in the 2010s not the 1930s.
That being said, the book proves its point: Orwell’s Paris is alive and well. The author writes his colleagues vibrantly and respectfully. The French bureaucracy and poverty he experiences trying to become a waiter in Paris are compelling to read about. Highly recommend!
u/Kaurblimey — 5 hours ago