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| A Good Year | 
 enlarge | Author: Peter Mayle
Creator: Ben Chaplin
Publisher: Random House Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $27.95
Buy New: $5.89
You Save: $22.06 (79%)
New (36) Used (11) from $1.49
Avg. Customer Rating:  48 reviews
Sales Rank: 1678604
Format: Abridged, Audiobook
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Abridged
Number Of Items: 4
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 6.2 x 5.5 x 1
ISBN: 0739339915
EAN: 9780739339916
ASIN: 0739339915
Publication Date: October 17, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand new and factory shrinkwrapped. NOT A REMAINDER! Official 4-CD set, exactly as pictured and described. In stock. Buy from a trusted seller. Check our rating.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Pedestrian Provence January 4, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Rather dull account of a man's transition from the corporate rat race of London to vineyard owner in Provence. The characters are all likable enough but I found the writing fell short, especially in the descriptions of the land and wine and food...all the things that make France so memorable.
I am rather perplexed that such mediocre fare would interest Hollywood enough to translate this to a movie.
A far better look at wine and the men who love it can be found in Sideways..both the book and the movie.
 Easy read December 2, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Read this on the plane from Toronto to Vegas, a very easy read with pleasant characters. The plot was predictable and the author didnt try to confuse it as he could have and as others tend to do so. Happy to pass this on for others to read and put a smile on their faces.
 Mayle delivers the usual cast of characters October 10, 2006
The great thing about Peter Mayle novels, including this one, A Good Year, is that the author is reliable. He deliveres the usual cast of characters: the sleazy one, the snobbish one and the totally flummoxed protagonist trying to make some sense of his life. It's all light hearted fun. Nothing profound. Just a quick, breezy read, which is why "A Good Year" has had such predictable reviews. And why I enjoyed reading it again, the second time. Mayle has carved out his niche and knows how to keep his audience happy.
A foreign land to call home June 15, 2006
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
After writing a couple of non-fiction books about being a foreigner in Provence, Peter Mayle deals with the fictional side of living in that region -- or so it seems. In an opening note, the write claims that his "A Good Year" is a work of fiction, however, `between the lines there were several real people involved'. Fact or fiction it doesn't matter -- what matter is that he wrote a charming little novel about the changes that life brings us and his character copes them.
Max Skinner loses his job in a financial firm in London, in the same day he inherits a vineyard in France, that belonged to an uncle. Since Max has spent much of his childhood there, he has a connection with that house, that land, and at this point, "A Good Year" becomes a book about going back to the place where you belong to.
It will take some time to Max realize that, but meanwhile he will meet a couple of people who will change his life. If Mayle's narrative is never profound, or his characters never rise above the stereotypical, his book is interesting exactly because of these factors. "A Good Year" doesn't aspire to be a great book about serious issues. It is a light, funny and charming novel to be read between two heavy, serious and demanding books.
Mayle's prose is painted in Provence's paints, with local color and charm. His characters are probably based on people he met, and although not very believable they are still pleasant. Evocative, the prose is direct and fast, what keep those pages turning very quickly.
If Mayle's objective was to bring his readers part of Provence and what is living there -- his mission was accomplished with charm. A better portray of the region one can only have visiting the real thing -- and it would be very nice to have Mayle as the guide.
 Great Read February 21, 2006
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
If you like Peter Mayle, you are going to love this book. Wonderful characters and as always he paints such a clear picture you feel like you are there.
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