A very enjoyable, and very quick, read set in Paris, alternating between the period of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 (and the rebellion of the working class Commune against the royalists), and 1946, immediately following the end of World War II.
The story traces two women of different generations of the same family who establish and operate a neighborhood bakery in Montmartre, and follows their personal ambitions and challenges, and their romantic and family attachments. The descriptions of the city, the social milieu, the clothing, and, of course, the food are vivid and appealing. There are even some recipes for those inclined to make their own French bread and pastry.
There are many books set in the Paris of the 1920s, or during World War II, but these time frames add a unique perspective, with the benefit of unexpected historical references to add to the reader's knowledge of the French capital.
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