Paris At The End Of The World: The City of Light During the Great War, 1914-1918- John Baxter

Paris At The End Of The World: The City of Light During the Great War, 1914-1918 John Baxter Harper Perennial, Apr 15 2014, $16.95 ISBN: 9780062221407 Seeking to understand why his Grandpa Archie abandoned his family and quit his job that waited for him upon his return from fighting in the front during WWI to stay in Paris, John Baxter researched his relative’s time in France. Adding to the mystery of what happened to change Archie is how adamantly he refused to discuss the war though his diaries provide a glimpse into his soul. However, instead of just a memoir, Paris At The End Of The World: The City of Light During the Great War, 1914-1918 is also a superb historical that shines a light on how Parisians especially artists, who flocked to the city from around the world in spite of the horrors not far away, adapted to the fighting. Whereas the city’s residents kept the gaiety of the arts thriving in spite of shortages and the sounds of war nearby, the grim no nonsense Australian soldiers across the Channel prepared to take the fight to the Kaiser. Readers will appreciate this strong WWI account of Paris and the Aussies in Britain while also enjoying the search for Archie’s motivation. Harriet Klausner