Cara Black has a series of mysteries set in different sections of Paris. She's a bit James Bondish, but lots of people really like her. Then there are the classics: Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities; Les Miserables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo; Hemingway's A Moveable Feast.

You might enjoy Adam Gopnik's Paris to the Moon. In '95 The New Yorker sent him to write a regular column from Paris and this is a book of essays he wrote after he returned. I found it a bit smug, but my fellow book club members liked it very well.

THE SWEET LIFE in Paris by David Lebowitz

Emile Zola's L'Assommoir and Therese Raquin.

Colette's Cheri

My all-time favorite is Hemingway's "A Moveable Feast."

I recently read "The Paris Wife", which is a fictionalized take on one of his wives.

Tatiana de Rosnay has written two novels with French settings that, in my view, capture the ambiance of the city.

Ginny, there are so many great books set in Paris! You will have almost too much to read on that famous city.

Actually, my favourite Parisian-themed work is "Mappa Mundi", a memorably sinister short story by Mary Butts. The story begins with the line: "Paris is not a safe city."

Well, here's one that's a no-brainer: Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World by Margaret MacMillan. I'm not sure how much of a travelogue it'll serve to be but, if nothing else, it should give you an idea of how freakishly historic that city is!

Also, if I'm not mistaken, The Bourne Identity (the original by Robert Ludlum) is set mostly in Paris. (Of course, I could be wrong -- I last read that when Reagan was still the President! Ok, maybe Bush Sr ...)

The Piano Shop on the West Bank by T E Carhart - non fiction, about a writer and his friendship with the owner of a piano shop on...

DOH !!

Left Bank, I meant Left Bank....

Also, if you can find Julia Child's autobiography/memoir, a good part of that is descriptive of her years in Paris.

Thanks everyone. This is a great list and you are right--you could spend a lifetime reading only about Paris...not that any of us could limit ourselves that way.

I really appreciate all the good suggestions. Thanks again.

Cannot let you go off without a recommendation from me, an easy, interesting and not-too-well-known part of France's history: Sarah's Key. Historical fiction.

It's about France's role in rounding up French Jews in 1942. There is a site and statue you can visit in Paris indicating the stadium where they were the Jews were held. Hollande has recently acknowledged France's participation in this evil act. Sorry if this is TMI, but the book made an impression on me.

Paris is on my "bucket list," so I envy you and hope you have a fabulous time.

Here is a link that might be useful: Anniversary of Vel d'Hiv

If you like mysteries you might enjoy the Victor Legris series, set in Paris in the late 19th century. I liked Murder on the Eiffel Tower. Claude Izner is the pseudonym of two sisters who are booksellers on the banks of the Seine.

Here is a link that might be useful: Claude Izner

I can recommend Fred Vargas for Paris atmosphere, especially The Three Evangelists and Have Mercy on Us All.

Enjoy your trip! I second so many of these books! Especially The Paris Wife, L'Assomoir, Therese Raquin, and Nana.

Some other titles to consider:

Pere Goriot by Honore de Balzac, one of my ALL TIME favorite books. Many, if not all, of Balzac's works are set in Paris.

Luncheon of the Boating Party by Susan Vreeland is historical fiction about the lives of the people in Renoir's famous painting of the same name.

Alexandre Dumas pere's The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo.

And a movie I thoroughly enjoyed... Midnight in Paris. It's about a Hollywood sitcom writer who is visiting Paris with his materialistic fiance and her parents. He dreams of being a "real" writer like Hemingway et al. The main character feels that Paris of the twenties was the best era ever. One night... at midnight... he is wandering the streets and an old-fashioned car pulls up and invites him to accompany them to a party...

PAM

I agree about Midnight In Paris. But if we're going to start recommending films about Paris, then Paris, Je T'aime is wonderful. Eighteen very short films set in different parts of Paris. Some are better than others, of course - but overall, it's one of my favourite films.

The first part of Julie Orringer's The Invisible Bridge takes place in 1930s Paris before war breaks out. The protagonist is a Hungarian Jew attending architecture school in Paris. The book really gives you a sense of the city and pre-war climate.