August in Paris (4 page)
Authors: Marion Winik
1. In “The Getaway,” the author finds an unexpected bright side in airport delaysâthe reemergence of her identity as a person who is not just a mother. In what ways have your travels strengthened your sense of identity? Challenged it?
2. Paris is often portrayed as the quintessential city of romance. In many ways, though, “August in Paris” is an antiromance. What specific details does the author zero in on to create a less-than-idyllic vision of this city?
3. The author seems to be someone who pushes traditional boundaries when it comes to parenting. How would you describe her relationship with her sons as described in “Party Time in the Lost City”? Her relationship with her daughter? In what ways is she a nontraditional parent? A traditional one?
4. In “Transit, a War Story,” Winik depicts a very different airport experience than in “The Getaway.” Is this because she is traveling with her daughter? Do you think her experience would have been as difficult had she been traveling alone?
5. In “Crime Report: Robbed in Peru,” a negative experience is transformed into something more positive. How have your own travel experiences reflected that kind of transformation?
6. The author's mother makes an appearance in several essays. What role does she play in each?
7. Do you have a favorite essay? A least favorite? Discuss your choices.
Marion Winik is the author of the new memoir
Highs in the Low Fifties: How I Stumbled Through the Joys of Single Living
. It joins
Telling
,
First Comes Love
,
The Lunch-Box Chronicles
,
The Glen Rock Book of the Dead
, and others in the ongoing saga of her life, now seven volumes. She writes a column at BaltimoreFishbowl.com, reviews books for
Newsday
, and contributes to
the Sun
and many other magazines. She has appeared on the
Today
show,
Oprah
, and
Politically Incorrect
, was a commentator on NPR's
All Things Considered
for 15 years, and was the Answer Lady for
Ladies' Home Journal
. These days, she is a professor in the MFA creative writing program at the University of Baltimore and lives in Baltimore, Maryland, with a couple of her kids and a miniature dachshund.
Also by Marion Winik
The Lunch-Box Chronicles: Notes from the Parenting Underground
Rules for the Unruly: Living an Unconventional Life
Above Us Only Sky: Essays
First Comes Love
Telling
The Glen Rock Book of the Dead
Ninety-Percent Mental
Highs in the Low Fifties: How I Stumbled Through the Joys of Single Living
Guesswork: Essays on forgetting and remembering who we are
The End of the World as We Know It
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