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Quick answer: The best books to read before visiting Paris include A Moveable Feast, The Paris Wife, My Life in France, Lunch in Paris, The Sweet Life in Paris and Paris to the Moon. Pack A Moveable Feast, The Paris Wife and My Life in France for three perspectives on the city.
Travel conditions, entry rules and safety advice change. Check your government’s official travel advisory before you go.
Paris is a city that has been written about so much that it sometimes seems imaginary: the cafes, the bookshops on the Seine, the artists’ garrets and the grand boulevards. Reading before you go is not just about spotting famous sites; it’s about hearing the voices of people who loved and endured the city. The fifteen books below include memoirs by Hemingway and Julia Child, novels of Hugo and Hemingway’s circle, histories of the Revolution and the Occupation, modern essays on Parisian life and a few romances. Some will make you hungry, some will break your heart. Read one or two before your trip, and consider visiting a famous bookshop to buy a local edition of another.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Type | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Moveable Feast | Ernest Hemingway | Memoir | readers who love 1920s Paris |
| The Paris Wife | Paula McLain | Historical fiction | readers who like romance |
| My Life in France | Julia Child | Memoir | food lovers |
| Lunch in Paris | Elizabeth Bard | Memoir | readers who like food and romance |
| The Sweet Life in Paris | David Lebovitz | Memoir | readers who love dessert |
| Paris to the Moon | Adam Gopnik | Essays | readers who like witty essays |
| Les Misérables | Victor Hugo | Classic | ambitious readers |
| The Hunchback of Notre-Dame | Victor Hugo | Classic | readers who like Gothic tales |
| Giovanni’s Room | James Baldwin | Novel | readers who like short, intense books |
| Down and Out in Paris and London | George Orwell | Memoir | readers who like gritty realism |
| Is Paris Burning? | Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre | History | readers who like WWII history |
| The Greater Journey | David McCullough | History | readers who like Americans abroad |
| Paris: The Secret History | Andrew Hussey | History | readers who like cultural history |
| The Little Paris Bookshop | Nina George | Novel | book lovers |
| The Paris Apartment | Lucy Foley | Thriller | readers who like suspense |
1. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
Hemingway’s memories of poor, happy years in Paris with Gertrude Stein, Fitzgerald and others. Elegant, though his portraits are selective.
Best for: readers who love 1920s Paris.
2. The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
Hadley Richardson tells the story of her marriage to Hemingway in 1920s Paris. Moving and detailed.
Best for: readers who like romance.
3. My Life in France by Julia Child
Child recounts discovering French cooking in postwar Paris. Joyful and mouth-watering.
Best for: food lovers.
4. Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard
An American falls in love with a Frenchman and Paris and shares recipes.
Best for: readers who like food and romance.
5. The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz
An American pastry chef describes life in Paris with humor and recipes.
Best for: readers who love dessert.
6. Paris to the Moon by Adam Gopnik
Gopnik’s New Yorker essays about living in Paris with his family. Elegant and funny.
Best for: readers who like witty essays.
7. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
Jean Valjean’s journey through nineteenth-century France. Long, emotional and sprawling. An abridgment is an option.
Best for: ambitious readers.
8. The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo
Quasimodo, Esmeralda and the great cathedral. Dramatic and tragic. Content note: violence.
Best for: readers who like Gothic tales.
9. Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
An American in Paris struggles with desire and shame. Powerful and brief. Content note: some sexual content.
Best for: readers who like short, intense books.
10. Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell
Orwell’s account of poverty in the two cities. Candid and sharp.
Best for: readers who like gritty realism.
11. Is Paris Burning? by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre
The liberation of Paris in 1944, told in dramatic detail.
Best for: readers who like WWII history.
12. The Greater Journey by David McCullough
How American artists, doctors and writers shaped themselves in nineteenth-century Paris.
Best for: readers who like Americans abroad.
13. Paris: The Secret History by Andrew Hussey
A history of Paris from the underside, exploring its radicals and rebels.
Best for: readers who like cultural history.
14. The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
A bookseller on a barge prescribes novels for troubles of the heart. Gentle and romantic.
Best for: book lovers.
15. The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley
A woman arrives at her brother’s Paris apartment to find him missing. Twisty. Content note: violence.
Best for: readers who like suspense.
How to Choose the Right Book on Paris
Choose by mood. For expatriate Paris, A Moveable Feast and The Paris Wife conjure the 1920s. For food and daily life, My Life in France, Lunch in Paris and The Sweet Life in Paris are delicious. For literature, Les Misérables, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and Giovanni’s Room show the city’s dramas. For history, Is Paris Burning?, The Greater Journey and Paris: The Secret History give depth. For modern stories, The Little Paris Bookshop and The Paris Apartment offer lighter and darker reads. For essays, Paris to the Moon is witty.
Which Book Should You Start With? A Quick Guide
If you are not sure where to begin, match your situation to the list below.
- Readers who love 1920s Paris: A Moveable Feast
- Readers who like romance: The Paris Wife
- Food lovers: My Life in France
- Readers who like food and romance: Lunch in Paris
- Readers who love dessert: The Sweet Life in Paris
- Readers who like witty essays: Paris to the Moon
- Ambitious readers: Les Misérables
- Readers who like Gothic tales: The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
- Readers who like short, intense books: Giovanni’s Room
- Readers who like gritty realism: Down and Out in Paris and London
- Readers who like WWII history: Is Paris Burning?
- Readers who like Americans abroad: The Greater Journey
- Readers who like cultural history: Paris: The Secret History
- Book lovers: The Little Paris Bookshop
- Readers who like suspense: The Paris Apartment
A Simple Reading Plan
Treat the reading as a warm-up. Read A Moveable Feast first for orientation, then The Paris Wife for a human voice, and use My Life in France or another title when you want depth. Alternate between fiction and nonfiction so your imagination and your knowledge grow together. Mark places you want to see, and map them. Reading on the plane is a pleasure, but reading in the weeks before gives you time to plan. If a book is too heavy, listen to it as an audiobook while packing, walking or cooking.
Print, E-Book or Audiobook?
Print, e-book and audiobook each suit different readers. Print is best for books you want to mark up and return to, which is useful for practical guides on Paris. E-books are cheap, portable and easy to search, and they make it simple to highlight a passage and find it again later. Audiobooks turn commutes, chores and walks into reading time, and a good narrator can make a heavy book on Paris easier to take in. Your public library offers all three through apps like Libby, so you can try a title before buying it. Many readers use two formats for the same book, listening first and then skimming a print copy for notes.
How to Get More From What You Read
To get the most from your reading, connect it to the real world. Highlight passages that describe places you will see, and look up photos and maps. Cook a dish from Paris to taste what you read about, and listen to music from the region. Talk about what you are reading with someone who has visited or lives there, because their stories add texture. Keep a small notebook for questions to ask locals. Reading is the first step; curiosity on the ground is the second, and the two feed each other.
Reading on a Budget
You do not need to buy all of these books. Your public library likely lends print, e-book and audiobook copies of many titles on Paris for free, and the hold feature lets you queue for popular ones. Used paperbacks are usually a few dollars, and thrift stores, library sales and swap groups are good sources. If you want to own a book you will mark up, buy the print edition; if you want to try several, borrow first and buy only the ones you finish and love. Subscription audiobook services often offer a free trial that covers a first title, and some libraries partner with apps that need only a library card.
Talk About What You Read
Reading on your own is valuable, and reading with others adds accountability. Consider forming a small book club around Paris, taking turns to choose a title from this list. Meet monthly, ask each person to share one idea and one action, and keep the tone supportive rather than competitive. If your friends are not interested, look for a local library group or an online community. A shared conversation helps you notice things you missed, and the encouragement of others makes it easier to keep going when progress feels slow.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Watch for these traps. First, assuming one author speaks for a whole country; Paris is far more varied than any book. Second, reading only historical books and missing present-day life. Third, relying on exotic or nostalgic portraits that locals may not recognize. Fourth, forgetting that some famous books are by visitors, with a visitor’s blind spots. Finally, skipping practical sources: official travel advisories, embassy sites and recent guidebooks matter for safety and logistics. Use these books to deepen your trip, not to replace planning.
How to Judge a Book on Paris
When choosing among books on Paris, ask who wrote it and why. Authors from the country often capture details outsiders miss, while visitors may explain things locals take for granted. Check the date, and look for reviews from readers who know the place. Be cautious with books that lean on stereotypes or promise to reveal the true spirit of a country in a single volume. Translations can vary in quality, so read a sample. Combining a classic with something recent helps you see both the history and the present.
Reading Is Not Planning
Reading prepares your mind, but practical planning prepares your trip. Use official sources for visas, vaccines, safety, currency and local rules, and look at recent traveler reports for current conditions. Books may describe places that have changed or closed. Be respectful of local customs, learn basic greetings and keep your plans flexible. If you are unsure about something, ask your hotel, a local guide or the embassy. With a little preparation, the stories you read will sit alongside real experiences.
Questions to Reflect On
Keep these in a notebook as you read:
- Which places in these books do I most want to see?
- Whose voice am I hearing: a local, a visitor or a historian?
- What do these books leave out?
- How might the place look different today?
- What would I like to ask a local when I arrive?
Tips for Reading About Paris
- Visit Shakespeare and Company. Browse the famous bookshop.
- Walk the Left Bank. Follow Hemingway.
- Read in a cafe. Order a coffee.
- Learn greetings. Bonjour.
- Take a food tour. Match Julia Child.
Related: 15 Best Books to Read Before Visiting France and 15 Best Books to Read Before Visiting Portugal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best books to read before visiting Paris?
A Moveable Feast, The Paris Wife, My Life in France and Paris to the Moon are popular.
Which books are best for food lovers?
My Life in France, Lunch in Paris and The Sweet Life in Paris.
Any novels about Paris?
Les Misérables, The Hunchback of Notre-Dame and Giovanni’s Room.
How many books on Paris should I read at once?
One or two at a time is plenty. Finish a book, try one idea from it and then move on, so what you read turns into something you do.
Are these books on Paris available as audiobooks?
Most of them are. Check your library’s app, such as Libby, or an audiobook service, and listen to a sample to see whether the narrator suits you.