Nearly half a million people follow Anna Kloots on Instagram as she careers around Paris. I'm one of them. On social media, she's enthusiastic, aspirational and, well, American. She's the original Emily in Paris. But Anna is also a highly accomplished writer. She's a New York Times best seller - her memoir My Own Magic is about her move after a bitter divorce to the city of romance for a life of love, laughter, bistros and Breton stripes. But it is also an ode to how books and reading can help you dream up another life for yourself. I wasn't suprised to find that she has an expertly curated selection of memoirs on her shelves. I was so greatful to Anna to saying yes to coming on Shelf Life purely becasue she liked the concept. I got to meet her little poodle Miette, catch a glimpse of the boyfriend and inspect her bookcase in her Parisian flat. She's living the dream.
Anna's introduction (1:55) Miette's introduction (2:40) A measly bookshelf for a writer (4:35) Why books are meant to be given away (6:10) Doggy interlude (6:38) Books mirroring life (7:54) How divorce prompted her to write (9:18) The meaning of magic (10:14) The book to read if you are at a crossroads (11:28) The next best North American divorcé in Paris (13:08) Back to The Alchemist (14:30) At the pool at 10am, drinking wine (16:30) Finding humour in the darkest of times (17:10) An excerpt which hits her readers hard (18:40) Does improving yourself mean saying yes or no more? (20:30) Meeting readers at book readings (23:12) The power of a book (23:40) The only time colour-coded bookshelves are OK (25:20) Why audiobooks make you fitter (26:45) Favourite memoir of all time (27:20) The book she lost in the divorce (28:20) Can writers go too far? (32:40) Paris good stuff (34:00) Don't give up on your good ideas (35:28) Is it odd to not like fiction? (36:25) The literary dealbreaker.
Reading list:
The Diary of Anaïs Nin by Anaïs Nin
Heart Talk: Poetic Wisdom for a Better Life by Cleo Wade
Psychopath Free by Jackson MacKenzie
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Measure of My Powers by Jackie Kai Ellis
Budapest from Assouline
The Michelin Guide France
Born Standing Up by Steve Martin
Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
David Sedaris
On Writing: A Memoir by Stephen King
Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero by Amanda Kloots and Anna Kloots
My Own Magic: A Reappearing Act by Anna Kloots
The Little(r) Museums of Paris: An Illustrated Guide to the City's Hidden Gems
Harry Potter by JK Rowling
All the Light We Cannot See and Four Seasons in Rome by Anthony Doerr
Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World by Adam Grant
I Was Told There'd Be Cake by Sloane Crosley
Huge thanks to exec-producer Melissa Fitzgerald and to Me For Queen for the splendid theme music. Thank you both for the support.
Additional music: Inspire by Wavecont | https://protunes.net/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
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