With a degree of savviness that would impress even the most experienced product management consultant, Jane Smiley has combined two foolproof genres of escapist fiction for her latest book, Perestroika in Paris: the Parisian fairy tale and the equestrian novel ... I like that Ms. Smiley has leaned into the fantasy, hiding Paras not in some random greenspace hugging the Périphérique but in the Champ de Mars, the crowded park in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower ... Ms. Smiley places herself in the consciousness of her characters, imagining the various ways that each creature perceives the world, but the feel-good charm of her novel flows from the fact that they are all able to understand each other, creating a species-crossing conspiracy of kindness.
The interesting thing about all this — especially if you’re a book reviewer who’s never so much as ridden a horse — is that her fixation on horses demonstrates the breadth of Smiley’s skills, not her narrowness ... [Smiley] crafts intimate domestic stories and big-picture social novels, addresses kids and grown-ups, and writes in a host of registers ... here Smiley stretches her talents even further ... though the animals’ personalities tend to stick to the straightforward archetypes of children’s literature — daring, haughty, exploring, squawky — Smiley strives to avoid a cloying tale about getting along ... the animals’ perspectives on people make our blessed strangeness easier to see. That makes Smiley’s fun, light read also something of a more serious literary challenge in characterization: Can a novelist give a novelist human traits, and vice versa, without teetering into unreality? ... Though there’s a perhaps inevitable Disney-ish sheen to the proceedings, as if the novel was a high-end adaptation of a film like Ratatouille. Smiley has the comic sensibility to sustain the suspension of disbelief her setup demands.
... might just be the perfect antidote for 2020. Readers looking for an escape from reality may find solace in this sweet fable for adults about an inquisitive Thoroughbred and all the creatures she encounters in her Parisian adventures. ... Smiley ascribes to every animal a self-awareness that isn’t meant to be cute or precious or even humanizing but is instead insightful and introspective and feels true to each species ... sneaks up on you. As much as I enjoyed following the introspective musings of the animals, I soon became caught up in the fates of the humans. As the novel progressed, I grew more invested in Etienne and his great grandmama. When Paras, Frida, and the boy find and begin to take care of each other, we realize how on the edge Etienne and Madame de Mornay are living ... This is an unusual novel that rewards readers willing to cast aside their cynicism and let themselves be transported to Paris, to see the Trocadéro and Champs de Mars through the eyes of these intrepid creatures. Plenty of children’s books feature animals at their center, but fables for adults are rare. In Perestroika in Paris, Jane Smiley has created a world where kindness is king, and that’s exactly where I want to be.
If ever there were a year when we could use some light relief, 2020 is it. Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jane Smiley (“A Thousand Acres”) surely didn’t know what kind of world she’d be sending her new book into — but Perestroika in Paris couldn’t have come at a better time. Fanciful, smart and atmospheric, it has just enough thematic weight to make it more than merely silly ... Perestroika in Paris isn’t being marketed as children’s fiction, but it would be a perfect gift for any horse-crazy, Paris-crazy or, for that matter, rat/dog/bird-crazy 12-year-old reader. That said, Smiley’s wit and her lyrical prose make the book a sparkling screwball-comedy treat for adults as well.
It's such a joy when an author whose work you've been reading for decades surprises you with something unexpected ... this delightful, heartwarming tale about creatures living in the rough in Paris's Champs de Mars is something new for Smiley, and it's an appealing balm for harsh times ... Smiley nimbly channels her various critters' world views as they discuss pithy subjects like ownership and freedom ... an especially welcome reminder of the bright spots even in dark times.
For people who love animals, particularly if they love animal stories, and especially if they love stories with animal characters who think and speak for themselves in their own frame of reference (compared to humans in animal form), then this book is a win-win-win ... simple and gentle tale ... What makes it outstanding is the author’s mastery of story craft and prose ... a seamless narrative and fascinating, unique scenario. You open the book and are immediately absorbed. There is nothing to trip on. The sentences, the evocation of characters and place, work together from beginning to end. Although the book has a literary tone, readers from 8 to 80 can understand every word and find within its pages the nature of story that best suits them ... top-level writing and storytelling.
A national penchant for whimsy is the only thing wrong with the French. They probably can’t help it, but there’s no need to encourage them, and The Strays of Paris is soaked in whimsy down to its endpapers, which are maps drawn in the style of Dufy. I really don’t want to be mean about a novel that is essentially sweet-natured and elegantly written; it is nice enough, but boring to read, and it lacks the salt of genuine imagination.
Has Jane Smiley mellowed? After writing some of the most brilliant and ferocious fiction of the past 40 years [...] Smiley takes a gentler approach in Perestroika in Paris ... Smiley’s tone may be genial, but she’s as tough-minded as ever ... This is a fable, but it operates within realistic conventions.
How boy, horse, dog, ducks, raven, and rat join forces and bring wonder and joy to lonely humans makes for a tenderly clever, charming, and spirit-nourishing tale of freedom and responsibility, acceptance and friendship, generosity and love ... Readers will flock to the first adult novel from Smiley in five years, especially since this smart and enchanting tale is a guaranteed antidote to stress.
Let's just say this book is exceedingly charming and get that out of the way ...This is one of those books that is hard to categorize, though it hardly matters. Written with the simplicity and wonder common to children's literature, Perestroika in Paris is smart and interesting enough to engage grown-ups — who might find, in this unlikely alliance of animals, a hint of the comfort of companionship among strangers so sorely lacking in our contentious moment.
We humans like to imagine that we know what our animal friends are thinking, but in Perestroika in Paris, Jane Smiley actually burrows into the craniums of a menagerie that includes a horse, a dog, a raven, some rats and the humans they interact with, resulting in a remarkable novel that splits the difference between Charlotte’s Web and Animal Farm ... To call this book 'charming' might be damning it with faint praise, but Smiley has created an otherworldly universe in which her makeshift animal family supports one another in an environment that, while not necessarily hostile, is certainly hazardous. Perestroika in Paris takes its place alongside the likes of Through the Looking-Glass, in that it will reward both precocious young readers and their parents with a sense of wonder and whimsy.
Fans of Pulitzer winner Smiley (A Thousand Acres) won’t be surprised to find a horse in her fanciful latest ... As relationships deepen between animals and humans in their exploration of where to call home, Smiley steers them toward a satisfying feel-good ending. Relentlessly upbeat—there are no villains here, and even dogs and rats cooperate—this is the perfect book for those for whom the real world, wracked with pandemic and politics, has become something to avoid.
