"This may be the most original cross-species love story I've ever read. Part travelogue, part recovery memoir, and one hundred percent compelling." —Gwen Cooper, author of the New York Times bestselling Homer's Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned About Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat "[An] epiphany-provoking gem of a story, skillfully crafted, vivid and rich with feeling." —Richard Blanco, Presidential Inaugural Poet and author of The Prince of los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood "A stunning, exceptional memoir from a woman who truly understands and appreciates birds . . . A captivating, heart-warming tale and a delightful, inspiring read." —Joanna Burger, author of The Parrot Who Owns Me: The Story of a Relationship An avian expert and poet shares a true story of beloved birds, a remarkable grandfather, a bad-girl youth—and an astonishing redemption Nikki Moustaki, author of The Bird Market of Paris, grew up in 1980s Miami, the only child of parents who worked, played, and traveled for luxury sports car dealerships. At home, her doting grandmother cooked for and fed her, but it was her grandfather—an evening-gown designer, riveting storyteller, and bird expert—who was her mentor and dearest companion. Like her grandfather, Nikki fell hard for birds. "Birds filled my childhood," she writes, "as blue filled the sky." Her grandfather showed her how to hypnotize chickens, sneak up on pigeons, and handle baby birds. He gave her a white dove to release for luck on each birthday. And he urged her to, someday, visit the bird market of Paris. But by the time Nikki graduated from college and moved to New York City, she was succumbing to alcohol and increasingly unable to care for her flock. When her grandfather died, guilt-ridden Nikki drank even more. In a last-ditch effort to honor her grandfather, she flew to France hoping to visit the bird market of Paris to release a white dove. Instead, something astonishing happened there that saved Nikki's life.

A comprehensive travel guide to Paris, France, with maps and information on hotels and over sixty restaurants, cultural and historic sights, and shopping and entertainment venues.

National Geographic Traveler Paris is the ideal companion for anyone visiting the most beautiful city in the world. Paris can be seen as a magical, timeless place where the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, and the hill of Montmartre are unchanged reminders of an extraordinary past. Or, we can keep our eyes firmly fixed on the present, exploring multicultural districts like Belleville, or the futuristic constructions such as the celebrated Musee du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac, the city's new anthropological museum. In this beautifully illustrated planner, National Geographic travel experts provide itineraries to guide visitors along the streets of the Marais or the grands boulevards and lead them along the banks of the Seine or through the corridors of the Louvre. Throughout, find must-know tips, including the best way to visit the essential venues, myriad locals-only destinations, and planning advice from when to go to where to stay. This is the essential guide to Paris--its well-known treasures and hidden wonders.