The French caf - Marie-France Boyer

The French cafe epitomises the French art of living. Through its timeless glass doors float the aromas of strong coffee and black-tobacco, hot milk and fresh croissants. The cafe, open early until late, is both focus and microcosm of society. Friends talk; lovers linger; the white saucers pile up as the world goes by; a lone customer comes in to read the newspapers or for a petit verre at the bar. The French cafe is a refuge, a place to meet, to sit inside or out, somewhere to see and be seen.;For anyone interested in French life and culture, here is a an intimate look at a great institution, from the grand establishments dating from the all rural bistro from the workers' local cafes to the legendary Parisian cafes where the poets, painters and philosophers gathered.;From Directoire decoration to Starck style, this book reveals the rich variety and extraordinary inventiveness of cafe design.;Marie-France Boyer is a freelance journalist, and represents in Paris the magazine "The World of Interiors". Her last book wass "Cabin Fever: Sheds and Shelters, Huts and Hideaways" (1993), also published by Thames and Hudson. Eric Morin is a Paris-based photographer who contributes to many magazines on interior design including "The World of Interiors".