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My French Whore
The beloved actor and screenwriter Gene Wilder's first novel, My French Whore, set during World War I, delicately and elegantly explores a most unusual romance. It's almost the end of the war and Paul Peachy, a young railway employee and amateur actor in Milwaukee, realizes his marriage is one-sided. He enlists, and ships off to France. Peachy instantly realizes how out of his depth he is—and never more so than when he is captured. Risking everything, Peachy—who as a child of immigrants speaks German—makes the reckless decision to impersonate one of the enemy's most famous spies.
As the urbane and accomplished spy Harry Stroller, Peachy has access to a world he could never have known existed—a world of sumptuous living, world-weary men, and available women. But when one of those women—Annie, a young, beautiful and wary courtesan—turns out to be more than she seems, Peachy's life is transformed forever.
As the urbane and accomplished spy Harry Stroller, Peachy has access to a world he could never have known existed—a world of sumptuous living, world-weary men, and available women. But when one of those women—Annie, a young, beautiful and wary courtesan—turns out to be more than she seems, Peachy's life is transformed forever.
178 pages, Hardcover
First published March 6, 2007
About the author
Gene Wilder
20 books164 followersGene Wilder was an American Emmy Award-winning and twice Academy Award-nominated stage and screen comic actor, screenwriter, film director, and author.
Wilder began his career on stage, making his screen debut in the film Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. His first major role was as Leo Bloom in the 1968 film, The Producers. This was the first in a series of prolific collaborations with writer/director Mel Brooks, including 1974's Young Frankenstein, the script of which garnered the pair an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Wilder was known for his portrayal of Willy Wonka on Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) and for his four films with Richard Pryor: Silver Streak (1976), Stir Crazy (1980), See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989), and Another You (1991). Wilder directed and wrote several of his films, including The Woman in Red (1984).
His marriage to actress Gilda Radner, who died from ovarian cancer, led to his active involvement in promoting cancer awareness and treatment, helping found the Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Detection Center in Los Angeles and co-founding Gilda's Club.
In more recent years, Wilder turned his attention to writing, producing a memoir in 2005, Kiss Me Like A Stranger: My Search for Love and Art, and the novels My French Whore (2007) and The Woman Who Wouldn't (2008).
Wilder began his career on stage, making his screen debut in the film Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. His first major role was as Leo Bloom in the 1968 film, The Producers. This was the first in a series of prolific collaborations with writer/director Mel Brooks, including 1974's Young Frankenstein, the script of which garnered the pair an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Wilder was known for his portrayal of Willy Wonka on Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) and for his four films with Richard Pryor: Silver Streak (1976), Stir Crazy (1980), See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989), and Another You (1991). Wilder directed and wrote several of his films, including The Woman in Red (1984).
His marriage to actress Gilda Radner, who died from ovarian cancer, led to his active involvement in promoting cancer awareness and treatment, helping found the Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Detection Center in Los Angeles and co-founding Gilda's Club.
In more recent years, Wilder turned his attention to writing, producing a memoir in 2005, Kiss Me Like A Stranger: My Search for Love and Art, and the novels My French Whore (2007) and The Woman Who Wouldn't (2008).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 311 reviews
March 16, 2011
Gene Wilder, we loved your wild-eyed fervor as Dr. Franken-steen in Young Frankenstein. We snickered at your sadistic glee as you dispatched spoiled brats in Willy Wonka... We loved your naive bumbling in the original version of The Producers. We shook our heads and laughed in spite of ourselves as you tried to pass for black while carrying a ghetto blaster alongside Richard Pryor in Silver Streak. We cringed at what you might do to that sheep in Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex...
We all mourned with you when you lost your wife, the beloved comedienne, Gilda Radner.
And, we know you have a talent for writing. You co-wrote Young Frankenstein with Mel Brooks. Your screenplay was nominated for an Oscar.
What I'm saying here is that, dude, we like you. You brought joy to millions. It's hard for us to say a bad word about you.
And now you've written this novel, My French Whore. It has an irresistible title, a lovely cover, and nice reviews on the back from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews and your old pal Mel Brooks himself.
Reading it, I can see you playing the protagonist Paul Peachy in every scene. I can imagine this on the screen, and you fumbling around as the World War I coward who, through the fates of crazy circumstance, becomes mistaken for a notorious German spy and who finds himself feted in the highest circles of the Kaiser's military command and the champagne milieu of the teutonic aristocracy. And see you as the sensitive everyman hidden underneath the disguise, finding the beauty and the closely guarded secrets of an irresistible French prostitute who does what she does not for money but for the sake of her sanity.
Gene, it's a lovely conceit, a little wisp of souffle. You make as good a go at wistfulness and elegance as you can. But reading it, I felt like almost all of it was a cobbling of cliches from every service comedy, every espionage spoof, and every bittersweet romantic comedy I've ever encountered. There are great books about lovely, tragic European romances in military settings, but they've already been written by great writers such as Arthur Schnitzler. And, Mr. Wilder, you seem to have regurgitated bits left in your grey matter from movies such as To Be or Not to Be or I Was Monty's Double, movie classics in which bumbling actors manage to deftly pull off subterfuge by playing in the enemy's court. Your writing is penny plain, the comedy is embarrassing in its obviousness, the situations are stale and recycled. The motivation for your protagonist, Peachy, leaving his wife and making such a drastic move as joining the army is summed up in one insufficient sentence "...the romantic part of our relationship seemed to have faded away." I find anachronism in using a contemporary word such as "relationship" in a book that is ostensibly meant to be a contemporaneous first-person telling of a story from the World War I era. And why do I keep remembering the wife that was left behind on page 2, even though she ceases to be part of the story? That part left me hanging.
This book, to say the least, is slight in the extreme. The paper the words are printed on can barely feel the ink. The Kirkus Reviews calls it "slender, nimble and satisfying." I call it a bubbly without the bubbles, a bittersweet comedy without a chuckle, a Gallic truffle dried up and wrinkled.
Gene, big guy, we trusted you on this one, but it's OK, you're only human. A lot of people aren't great writers. And some of the ones who are great writers slave in obscurity but don't get published because their names are Joe Smith and Ulak Buttorf, and not Gene Wilder. So folks, go elsewhere. Or better yet, rent Young Frankenstein or Stir Crazy or Willy Wonka and enjoy the real talent to be enjoyed from this maniacal, wild-haired artist.
We all mourned with you when you lost your wife, the beloved comedienne, Gilda Radner.
And, we know you have a talent for writing. You co-wrote Young Frankenstein with Mel Brooks. Your screenplay was nominated for an Oscar.
What I'm saying here is that, dude, we like you. You brought joy to millions. It's hard for us to say a bad word about you.
And now you've written this novel, My French Whore. It has an irresistible title, a lovely cover, and nice reviews on the back from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews and your old pal Mel Brooks himself.
Reading it, I can see you playing the protagonist Paul Peachy in every scene. I can imagine this on the screen, and you fumbling around as the World War I coward who, through the fates of crazy circumstance, becomes mistaken for a notorious German spy and who finds himself feted in the highest circles of the Kaiser's military command and the champagne milieu of the teutonic aristocracy. And see you as the sensitive everyman hidden underneath the disguise, finding the beauty and the closely guarded secrets of an irresistible French prostitute who does what she does not for money but for the sake of her sanity.
Gene, it's a lovely conceit, a little wisp of souffle. You make as good a go at wistfulness and elegance as you can. But reading it, I felt like almost all of it was a cobbling of cliches from every service comedy, every espionage spoof, and every bittersweet romantic comedy I've ever encountered. There are great books about lovely, tragic European romances in military settings, but they've already been written by great writers such as Arthur Schnitzler. And, Mr. Wilder, you seem to have regurgitated bits left in your grey matter from movies such as To Be or Not to Be or I Was Monty's Double, movie classics in which bumbling actors manage to deftly pull off subterfuge by playing in the enemy's court. Your writing is penny plain, the comedy is embarrassing in its obviousness, the situations are stale and recycled. The motivation for your protagonist, Peachy, leaving his wife and making such a drastic move as joining the army is summed up in one insufficient sentence "...the romantic part of our relationship seemed to have faded away." I find anachronism in using a contemporary word such as "relationship" in a book that is ostensibly meant to be a contemporaneous first-person telling of a story from the World War I era. And why do I keep remembering the wife that was left behind on page 2, even though she ceases to be part of the story? That part left me hanging.
This book, to say the least, is slight in the extreme. The paper the words are printed on can barely feel the ink. The Kirkus Reviews calls it "slender, nimble and satisfying." I call it a bubbly without the bubbles, a bittersweet comedy without a chuckle, a Gallic truffle dried up and wrinkled.
Gene, big guy, we trusted you on this one, but it's OK, you're only human. A lot of people aren't great writers. And some of the ones who are great writers slave in obscurity but don't get published because their names are Joe Smith and Ulak Buttorf, and not Gene Wilder. So folks, go elsewhere. Or better yet, rent Young Frankenstein or Stir Crazy or Willy Wonka and enjoy the real talent to be enjoyed from this maniacal, wild-haired artist.
August 27, 2014
I read a book! In a day! Like Karen!
December 29, 2016
I wish Gene Wilder and I could've been best friends in real life.
January 11, 2008
this book was the quickest read i've ever had. it was amazing, but don't let the title put you off. the story is actually so good, you'll shit yourself. but seriously, i read it at work one day. yeah, the whole thing at work- granted at 178 pages and printed on small pages, it's really more like 140 pages, but a very touching work.
read it.
read it.
read it.
October 14, 2011
_My French Whore_ by Gene Wilder (first published 2007)
Added Jun 23, 2008.
I read this book around Jan. 2009.
I enjoyed this book immensely!
I think everyone would enjoy it.
It's simple and sweet and entirely compelling.
Leave it to Gene Wilder to write such a lovely tale.
At Amazon.com I found the following short description:
=================================
"In 1918 when Paul Peachy's marriage is failing, he decides to join the army. Since he speaks German he's sent for to help interrogate notorious German spy Harry Stroller. Afraid of being sent to the front he deserts and passes himself of as Stroller. The German officials treat him like royality and give him a French whore for comfort."
FROM: http://www.amazon.com/My-French-Whore...
==================================
I started a discussion of this book at:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/9...
Added Jun 23, 2008.
I read this book around Jan. 2009.
I enjoyed this book immensely!
I think everyone would enjoy it.
It's simple and sweet and entirely compelling.
Leave it to Gene Wilder to write such a lovely tale.
At Amazon.com I found the following short description:
=================================
"In 1918 when Paul Peachy's marriage is failing, he decides to join the army. Since he speaks German he's sent for to help interrogate notorious German spy Harry Stroller. Afraid of being sent to the front he deserts and passes himself of as Stroller. The German officials treat him like royality and give him a French whore for comfort."
FROM: http://www.amazon.com/My-French-Whore...
==================================
I started a discussion of this book at:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/9...
March 19, 2014
Entertaining, hilarious, and romantic - who could ask for anything more? I loved this tale of a heroic American World War 1 soldier who masquerades as a German spy and, in the process, falls madly in love with a French woman who has had to offer her body in exchange for...just about everything. A wonderful, random find from the library :-D
January 11, 2011
I can usually tell where an author is coming from... something like forensic deconstruction... but Gene Wilder is a mystery. He writes an excellent story with simple wit and much grace. His prose is straightforward and powerful. For anyone put off by the title, don't be; the heroine of the story may have been one in the past but as a character in this story isn't... at least not by my definition. I read it in one sitting, and couldn't (or wouldn't) put it down. I had hoped for a different ending, and would love to pick up the plot late in the book and rewrite it... but then it would be mine, and not the author's. As it stands it left quite an impression upon me, and I find myself thinking about Peachy and Annie. I want to believe they are, like the couple in Orwell's "Keep The Aspidistra Flying," still loving together... still loving... still.
June 11, 2008
A sweet love story set in WWI about a coward who becomes a hero and falls in love with a whore.
While reading this wonderful short novel you can't help but see Gene Wilder as Paul Peachy, the hero of the story. It's written as a journal, a few days in the life of an ordinary soldier who for a short time, becomes a celebrated spy.
While reading this wonderful short novel you can't help but see Gene Wilder as Paul Peachy, the hero of the story. It's written as a journal, a few days in the life of an ordinary soldier who for a short time, becomes a celebrated spy.
August 30, 2016
I read this on a two-hour plane ride from Nashville to Houston. It's decent for that purpose, and the fact that it was written by Gene Wilder is pretty awesome, but it's kind of thin sketch of a novel. Fun in parts, but nothing terribly substantial.
June 10, 2009
A completely charming, tiny novel. I've always liked Gene Wilder and while I couldn't escape picturing Wilder as the main character "Peachy", it didn't matter. He won me over with his simplicity of style and the great pace of the story and dialogue.
Other folks have commented on wanting the story longer, but it's perfect. It does it's job. It transports the reader to another place and time. It transports us to the feeling of living fast, with the constant fear of discovery about our fraud, and the exhilaration of feeling every moment.
I'm tempted to re-classify this one onto my literature shelf, but it's not quite there. It's not quite transcendent, that I consider literature to be. It's just a solidly absorbing and entertaining little tale.
Other folks have commented on wanting the story longer, but it's perfect. It does it's job. It transports the reader to another place and time. It transports us to the feeling of living fast, with the constant fear of discovery about our fraud, and the exhilaration of feeling every moment.
I'm tempted to re-classify this one onto my literature shelf, but it's not quite there. It's not quite transcendent, that I consider literature to be. It's just a solidly absorbing and entertaining little tale.
September 16, 2016
Gene Wilder's voice shines through in this story.
December 13, 2016
This is a romance in the true sense of the word romantic. The writing is spare, stark, illuminated and deeply moving.
Paul Peachy, railway worker, amateur actor and unhappy newlywed, decides one day to join the army. WWI, American army. This story defines courage and love. I can't tell you what happens but I can recommend that you read it.
I did think this was a really good book, but in retrospect I think 4 stars, not 5. Probably 4 1/2 is the right rating.
Paul Peachy, railway worker, amateur actor and unhappy newlywed, decides one day to join the army. WWI, American army. This story defines courage and love. I can't tell you what happens but I can recommend that you read it.
I did think this was a really good book, but in retrospect I think 4 stars, not 5. Probably 4 1/2 is the right rating.
October 13, 2007
Quick, light read. I read it in a day, smiled and went to sleep content.
March 13, 2008
Very cute little book! For anyone who has ever read the Scarlett Pimpernel would love this story by Gene Wilder.
November 29, 2017
Oh Gene, you will always have a special place in my heart. Great story telling, lots of laughs and plenty of love. Great quick read.
October 8, 2014
This was a fun little farce. Nothing terribly deep, but an amusing read. The romance is sweet & the military aspect was interesting. A very short book; I finished it in a day.
April 2, 2015
What a wonderful little book! It was just what I needed after a string of heavy novels.
March 24, 2019
Gene Wilder's debut novel seems to be an adult colouring-in book of a novel about the First World War. All the important bits are there: the reason for joining the war effort, the cruelty and discomfort of the trenches, the adventure and drama of escape, the pitfalls of a wartime romance, a woman with a horrible backstory - but it is all told in such a lighthearted way that it seems almost disrespectful. The ending seems quite unprepared by the narrative preceding it. And there are factual matters that seem quite unconvincing: a ball to celebrate the Kaiser during the last months of the First World War? The delicate food Annie prepares for Paul / Harry? This novel would probably not have been published without the author's name attached to this light, frothy, unsubstantial tale.
Gene Wilder se roem as akteur het bes moontlik die publikasie van hierdie roman verseker. Dit is spookasemlig, en gegewe die gebeure (dit speel af gedurende die laaste maande van die Eerste Wêreldoorlog), is die aanslag selfs sonder respek vir die karakters en omstandighede wat uitgebeeld word. 'n Mens lees dit teen hoë spoed deur weens die ligtheid daarvan, maar ten slotte laat dit 'n mens effens ongemaklik en onbevredigend voel.
Gene Wilder se roem as akteur het bes moontlik die publikasie van hierdie roman verseker. Dit is spookasemlig, en gegewe die gebeure (dit speel af gedurende die laaste maande van die Eerste Wêreldoorlog), is die aanslag selfs sonder respek vir die karakters en omstandighede wat uitgebeeld word. 'n Mens lees dit teen hoë spoed deur weens die ligtheid daarvan, maar ten slotte laat dit 'n mens effens ongemaklik en onbevredigend voel.
June 29, 2023
Una bella storia che acchiappa il lettore dall'inizio alla fine. Un ritmo narrativo che porta in un attimo alla fine del libro.
August 23, 2022
It took me a couple of chapters to get into the rhythm of this book, but once I did I couldn't put it down. I found it to be a charming, quirky, light read. Private Peachy turned out to be such a loveable and clueless character who, through a barrage of convinient coincidences and a little bit of humour managed to find himself living his best life when captured by the enemy during WWI.
February 7, 2016
Em primeiro lugar fiquei admirada ao ver a fotografia do autor na capa, o que só aconteceu quando peguei neste livro para o ler. Nunca pensei que o actor do filme "Uma mulher de vermelho" ou "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" fosse o autor deste livro!
A simplicidade e a ironia são os principais ingredientes deste maravilhoso romance. Não é, de todo, um livro muito bem escrito e uma obra imprescendível, mas quem o ler ficará com toda a certeza rendido(a). Em cerca de 190 páginas estão presentes uma variedade impressionável de momentos da vida da personagem principal, Paul Peachy, que me fez render todo o meu coração a esta personagem genial e adorável! Quem pegar neste livro prepare-se para soltar umas gargalhadas perante situações simplesmente inacreditáveis.
Se eu conseguisse resumir, este é um livro onde através de um relato de captura e romance de um simples soldado, durante a Primeira Guerra Mundial, se mostra a quem queira ler a verdadeira inutilidade da guerra e que fácil é compreendermos as duas faces da moeda onde não existe o Bem e o Mal, mas sim uma cambada de pessoas estúpidas num nível hierárquico superior que pensam que a guerra é a solução de uma qualquer situação.
Os meus sinceros agradecimentos a editora Civilização por ter apostado nesta pequena mas genial obra que irei guardar na minha biblioteca pessoal com todo o carinho...
A simplicidade e a ironia são os principais ingredientes deste maravilhoso romance. Não é, de todo, um livro muito bem escrito e uma obra imprescendível, mas quem o ler ficará com toda a certeza rendido(a). Em cerca de 190 páginas estão presentes uma variedade impressionável de momentos da vida da personagem principal, Paul Peachy, que me fez render todo o meu coração a esta personagem genial e adorável! Quem pegar neste livro prepare-se para soltar umas gargalhadas perante situações simplesmente inacreditáveis.
Se eu conseguisse resumir, este é um livro onde através de um relato de captura e romance de um simples soldado, durante a Primeira Guerra Mundial, se mostra a quem queira ler a verdadeira inutilidade da guerra e que fácil é compreendermos as duas faces da moeda onde não existe o Bem e o Mal, mas sim uma cambada de pessoas estúpidas num nível hierárquico superior que pensam que a guerra é a solução de uma qualquer situação.
Os meus sinceros agradecimentos a editora Civilização por ter apostado nesta pequena mas genial obra que irei guardar na minha biblioteca pessoal com todo o carinho...
June 25, 2013
A cortesã francesa acabou por se revelar uma surpresa agradável. É um livro que aborda temas como o amor e coragem.
Esta história relata a aventura dum soldado americano chamado Paul pelas terras de França aquando a 1ª GM. É um livro simples, de leitura rápida – muito rápida – mas muito agradável de se ler.
Pode dizer-se que o livro encontra-se dividido em 2 partes, sendo a primeira caraterizada por um grande sentido de humor, onde é caraterizada e criticada a vida dos soldados e todas as suas dificuldades. A parte que gostei mais.
Na segunda parte esse humor acaba por se desvanecer para dar lugar a uma história de amor que surge quando Paul se mete num GRANDE problema.
Não irei adiantar muito caso contrário irei contar a história toda onde o grande objetivo do autor é, no fundo, apresentar a sua filosofia face ao amor
Aconselho a leitura a todos. Apesar de não ser muito complexa revela-se uma leitura muito agradável, em particular, para aqueles períodos em que se pretende intercalar livros + complexos com livros mais simples.
July 16, 2008
This debut novel by Wilder is a captivating story of love and heroism near the end of World War I. Nondescript Paul Peachy, realizing that his marriage has floundered, enlists to serve in the military near the end of WWI, and is shipped off to France. He soon discovers that he is a coward, not a hero, and begins to doubt the wisdom of his hasty choice. As if that's not bad enough, he is suddenly captured, whereupon he makes another surprising decision... to impersonate a famous German spy! Since this guy is nearly legendary and seldom actually seen, the Germans don't know what he looks like, and Peachy manages to convince them his charade is the truth. He is treated like a god, even provided with a French whore, who turns out to be much more than she appears. This delightful story has plenty of surprises and twists for such a short novel, and left me wishing for more. I definitely recommend this gem.
August 11, 2009
I will preface this and say I did not read this book, I listened to it on tape on my way across the PA turnpike.
The book takes place in Germany mid-WWI. The main character is an Paul, a German-speaking American soldier who leaves his wife and up and joins the war. He is fighting overseas when they capture the German spy, Harry Stroller. Mr. Stroller is a German spy, although Great Britain thinks he is a spy for them. After interrogating Mr. Stroller, Paul is captured by Germany during a battle. Right before he is executed, he makes a split second decision to "become" Harry Stroller, the spy. Since very few people have met Harry, he pulls off the charade.
The rest of the book follow Paul as he imitates Harry, pretends to be a great spy and generally invokes "what would Harry do?". While he is at the house of a general, he meets his "French whore" Annie, when he is set up by the General. The complex relationships and lies weave a good tale, and the ending was unexpected.
The book takes place in Germany mid-WWI. The main character is an Paul, a German-speaking American soldier who leaves his wife and up and joins the war. He is fighting overseas when they capture the German spy, Harry Stroller. Mr. Stroller is a German spy, although Great Britain thinks he is a spy for them. After interrogating Mr. Stroller, Paul is captured by Germany during a battle. Right before he is executed, he makes a split second decision to "become" Harry Stroller, the spy. Since very few people have met Harry, he pulls off the charade.
The rest of the book follow Paul as he imitates Harry, pretends to be a great spy and generally invokes "what would Harry do?". While he is at the house of a general, he meets his "French whore" Annie, when he is set up by the General. The complex relationships and lies weave a good tale, and the ending was unexpected.
July 29, 2012
When this book came my way, I read the title, and was about to dismiss it, then I saw who the author was, and thought, really? I had no idea that Gene Wilder was also an author!! So at that point, my original dismissal wavered, so I read the blurb, and my interest was piqued!
My French Whore takes us into the life of Private Paul Peachy, who, bored with life in Milwaukee, enlists in the army and heads to France to fight in WW1. Shocked by the death of his friends within minutes of entering the fray, he runs away, but is captured by the Germans where he commences to set up a nice cushy life impersonating a German spy!
Paul, despite his "cowardice" is a really likeable character, he's clever and witty, and it was a delight to make his acquaintance in this charming little book! The story was engaging, and although short, overall satisfying! I shall definitely be looking out for others by Mr Wilder!
My French Whore takes us into the life of Private Paul Peachy, who, bored with life in Milwaukee, enlists in the army and heads to France to fight in WW1. Shocked by the death of his friends within minutes of entering the fray, he runs away, but is captured by the Germans where he commences to set up a nice cushy life impersonating a German spy!
Paul, despite his "cowardice" is a really likeable character, he's clever and witty, and it was a delight to make his acquaintance in this charming little book! The story was engaging, and although short, overall satisfying! I shall definitely be looking out for others by Mr Wilder!
October 28, 2008
I loved this book. It was somewhat surprising to me that I could love the characters in this book, given it's so short and compact. His writing style was fantastic and I could visualize Wilder as the main character. Especially when he would get caught up in situations where you could visualize the physical comedy that ensued.
Peachy, a young man from Milwaukee leaves his home for WWII and is captured by the enemy. A split second decision to save his life, he starts to impersonate a famous german spy he meets earlier. He begins living a life he has never known, intact with being offered a "french whore".
The book is well written and the love story is beautiful.
I read it simply due to a discussion about how comedians can be fabulous writers, and Wilder certainly is a wonderful writer. Now I must go out and read Kiss Me Like a Stranger and The Woman Who Wouldn't.
Peachy, a young man from Milwaukee leaves his home for WWII and is captured by the enemy. A split second decision to save his life, he starts to impersonate a famous german spy he meets earlier. He begins living a life he has never known, intact with being offered a "french whore".
The book is well written and the love story is beautiful.
I read it simply due to a discussion about how comedians can be fabulous writers, and Wilder certainly is a wonderful writer. Now I must go out and read Kiss Me Like a Stranger and The Woman Who Wouldn't.
January 19, 2010
This was a sweet, slight, story set during World War I. It was fun to read, and is well-executed by Wilder. "Slight" is the operative word, however. The genre requires the lady mentioned in the title to have a heart of gold and Wilder does not disappoint. For a war that was, by all accounts, a brutal, bloody, muddy mess there is an awful lot of fine dining, excellent wine and civilized conversation. Why, there's not really anyone in this book who is even the least little bit nasty.
If it were a dessert, it would be a meringue. Which makes its brevity all the more of a virtue.
If it were a dessert, it would be a meringue. Which makes its brevity all the more of a virtue.
March 31, 2014
Don't let the title turn you off from reading this book. It's by far the best book I've read this year, though it might have something to do with Gene Wilder being my favorite actor of all time. Wilder's voice comes through and though sometimes it's hard not to read himself as the main character it doesn't take anything away from the story at all. Maybe I'm making another Wilder connection but My French Whore reminded me a lot of the Mel Brooks' film "To Be Or Not to Be". I was surprised after reading that this hasn't been optioned as a film or even a stage play. It's that adaptable.
March 25, 2016
I was looking for a book written by a comedian for a reading challenge. When I found this debut novel written by Gene Wilder I was very curious. Gene Wilder writing a romance? I had to give it a try and so glad I did! My French Whore is a charming romance set during the end of WWI. It was so easy to get completely immersed in this funny, sweet and clever tale of Pvt Paul Peachy's adventures as a German Colonel imposter and his romance with a French whore.
April 29, 2009
I thought, "It's Gene Wilder--he's a little -ooky." But it is not so good. Then it just pissed me off cuz it is a really slim book and the only reason it was published is cuz it is Gene Wilder. And then I felt like a sucker for reading it cuz it is Gene Wilder.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 311 reviews