I have to admit to being a little nervous when I was approached recently for my views on the above book, Cities of Kings. I have followed Bespoke Traveller for quite some time and didn’t want to spoil a good friendship. I needn’t have worried. Atreyee Gupta and Jesse Japitana have done a great job. Their passion and enthusiasm for architecture and history transmits readily to this self-publication, and I am delighted to be able to heartily recommend it.
London is a city which captured my imagination as a girl, and it has never really let it go. I visit infrequently these days, but when I do it conjures the same excitement and sense of pride I felt back then. I delight in the architecture, old and new, and in that skyline, pierced anew by gravity-defying creations.
With Paris, I have only a fleeting acquaintance. That same starry-eyed girl boarded a plane and wandered the banks of the Seine with the same enthusiasm she had bestowed on the Thames. Sadly, I have never been back, but reading Cities and Kings I feel the need to return more than ever.
In the book the two cities are compared and contrasted and their architectural histories told. Detailed photographs accompany the text, and I learnt many little intriguing facts. I hadn’t realised how ignorant I was of parts of my own history! The stories of the kings and queens and their passions are expertly woven into the fabric of London and Paris.
I love it when enthusiasm for a subject shines through as it does here. I don’t want to reveal too much and spoil a good read, but you can be sure that you will be taken to The Tower, and stroll in the gardens of Hampton Court. In Paris, I particularly enjoyed my visit to the Louvre, and to the lesser known area of La Defense.
The book is concluded with a practical section on visiting and getting around in the twin cities. All in all, a thoroughly enjoyable read. You can purchase the book on Amazon Kindle or at the Apple iBookstore. I think it would make a rather good Christmas present.
Meantime I’m thinking that Paris would make a fine destination for our Silver Wedding next August. What do you think?
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