An indispensable, richly informative, and always entertaining sourcebook on Provence by the writer who has made the region his own.Though organized from A to Z, this is hardly a conventional work of reference. It is rather a selection of those aspects of Provence that Peter Mayle in almost twenty years there has found to be the most interesting, curious, delicious, or down-right fun.In more than 170 entries he writes about subjects as wide-ranging as architecture and zingue-zingue-zoun (in the local patois, a word meant to describe the sound of a violin), as diverse as expatriates, Aix-en-Provence, the Provençal character, legends, lavender, linguistic oddities, the museum of the French Foreign Legion, the museum of the corkscrew, the origins of “La Marseillaise,” and a bawdy folklore character named Fanny.And, of course, he writes about food and vin rosé, truffles, olives, melons, bouillabaisse, the cheese that killed a Roman emperor, even a cure for indigestion. The wonderful accompanying artwork includes curiosities Mayle has gathered over the years — matchbooks, drawings, century-old ads, photos, tourist brochures, maps.Provence A-Z is a delight for Peter Mayle’s ever-growing audience and the perfect complement to any guidebook on Provence, or, for that matter, France.
Peter Mayle Books
Peter Mayle became renowned for his books capturing life in Provence. His works evoke the charm of rural France, offering readers a unique window into its culture and landscapes. Mayle masterfully describes the atmosphere and daily details, immersing his audience in the sun-drenched world of Provence. His writing is filled with humor, keen observation, and a deep affection for the region he adopted.







A guide to male and female anatomy, methods of birth control, and veneral disease.
The Story of P&O
The Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company - Revised Edition
- 240 pages
- 9 hours of reading
For more than 150 years P&O has been one of the world's greatest shipping lines. Beginning with the mail contract to Gibraltar, P&O quickly became the British way to travel the world. The first shipping company to offer cruises, more than 100 years later cruising on P&O's famous white ships remains an important part of the company's activities, although it is now an internationally based group with many wide-ranging interests. This is the history of the company and its operations.
Where Did I Come From?
- 47 pages
- 2 hours of reading
A manual for teaching young children about the facts of life.
Wicked Willie's Low-down on Men
- 64 pages
- 3 hours of reading
The sequel to "A Year in Provence". Peter Mayle's love affair with the south of France continues and deepens. Now he's got most of the building work organized, he's had time for a few trips - to the Cannes Film Festival, the Menerbes dog show and the wine caves at Chateauneuf-du-Pape.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • In this witty and warm-hearted account, Peter Mayle tells what it is like to realize a long-cherished dream and actually move into a 200-year-old stone farmhouse in the remote country of the Lubéron with his wife and two large dogs. He endures January's frosty mistral as it comes howling down the Rhône Valley, discovers the secrets of goat racing through the middle of town, and delights in the glorious regional cuisine. A Year in Provence transports us into all the earthy pleasures of Provençal life and lets us live vicariously at a tempo governed by seasons, not by days.
In this charming guide to the pleasures of Provence, Mayle delivers a delightful meditation on the rich pleasures of the humble loaf. Includes precise instructions for making 14 kinds of bread. 25 drawings & 6 photos in text.
Entry Island
- 544 pages
- 20 hours of reading
When Detective Sime Mackenzie is sent from Montreal to investigate a murder on the remote Entry Island, 850 miles from the Canadian mainland, he leaves behind him a life of sleeplessness and regret. FATE WILL FIND YOU… But what had initially seemed an open-and-shut case takes on a disturbing dimension when he meets the prime suspect, the victim’s wife, and is convinced that he knows her – even though they have never met. And when his insomnia becomes punctuated by dreams of a distant Scottish past in another century, this murder in the Gulf of St. Lawrence leads him down a path he could never have foreseen, forcing him to face a conflict between his professional duty and his personal destiny.
Man's Best Friend
- 62 pages
- 3 hours of reading
Offers a frank and humorous look at male sexuality, the relationship between men and women, and problems that develop in an adult sex life



