Boss Dog: A Story of Provence

by M.F.K. Fisher

Book Overview

Chronicles an American mother's year abroad with her two daughters in Aix-en-Provence. Part memoir and part fiction, this adventure is presided over by an aloof and proprietary mongrel, the Boss Dog, who frequents the young family's favorite cafe.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679738606
• ISBN13: 9780679738602
• Release Date: March 1992
• Publisher: Pantheon Books
• Length: 118 Pages
• Weight: 0.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

A fairy take in real life france

M.F. K. Fisher is most famous as the godmother of food writing. But in this story, she ventures away from the culinary and spins a tale of two young expatriate girls, their mother and the mongrel dog who watches over them (and the entire town of Aix-en-Provence.) In the course of the book, the dog checks out strangers, attends festivals, and even foils robberies. You can't quite tell as you read it if the shaggy-dog-sties are fiction or true adventures; but the dog at the very least provides this tiny family a way to feel at home and welcomed in a strange country. It's a book you can read again and again (which is useful since children demand just that.) Attention filmmakers: you are missing your next hit!

a tasty morsel

I thought this book was utterly charming. Fisher delights, as usual, with her precise prose, vivid descriptions, wry and warm affection for the people, places and dogs of France, speficially in this instance of small Provence town of Aix. This, which must be a slightly (or who knows how much) fictionalized account of the author's stay in Aix with her two daughters and their dealings with a mysterious and sometimes aloof dog. Each vignette fully realizes the drama, humor, and flavor of vintage Mary Frances Kennedy. It's good reading for kids; the pace is swift and the diaglogue sharp. I can't wait to read it to my son when he gets older.

Paws in Aix

Mary Francis Fisher and her two young daughters encounter this attractive feral dog from cafe to cafe. A delighful tale to introduce you to that beautiful city of Aix-en-Provence.

Family Fun in France

This is a little gem of a book about an American mother and her two children, and their time living in France. MFK Fisher is a delight to read, and this book speaks of her personal experience in France. The book tells about the adventures of a dog that is in command, and how they come to know, watch and love this canine manager.This is a great story to read as an adult, and especially wonderful to share with children. As someone who lived abroad as a child, I would highly recommend it for anyone moving, or visiting a foreign country (especially France), as it tells of the adventures that one can find everywhere on the road. the adventures that one can find everywhere on the road.

Excellent, funny story

In this story, the excellent M. F. K. Fisher, better known for her gastronomical writing, tells the story of two American little girls, Anne and Mary, and their mother as they adapt to living in France. They gradually make the acquaintance of a mongrel dog, who manages to keep tabs on the entire town. Told as a series of vignettes, this semi-autobiographical story is charming and funny, if slightly lacking in continuity. A pleasure to read.