The funny thing in France is that writers are not allowed to retire, because the French government say you are still earning money from books you wrote 20 years ago.

The day when a Frenchman switches from the formality of vous to the familiarity of tu is a day to be taken seriously. It is an unmistakable signal that he has decided - after weeks or months or sometimes years - that he likes you. It would be chulish and unfriendly of you not to return the compliment. And so, just when you are at last feeling comfortable with vous and all the plurals that go with it, you are thrust headlong in to the singular world of tu.

Good manners make any man a pleasure to be with. Ask any woman.

Prescription for writer’s block: fear of poverty.

Nowadays, if you have a journey, albeit a simple one, you consider yourself lucky if nothing happens.

The English kill their meat twice: once when they slaughter it and once when they cook it.

Sundays in France have a different atmosphere to other days, with fewer phone calls, no postman, no delivery men and no one banging on the door.