Breath of French Air

By H.E. Bates

Book Overview

Take a perfick trip to France in the second book of this much-loved series, inspiration for the ITV drama THE LARKINS starring Bradley Walsh

'I should like to go to France, ' said Ma.

'God Almighty, ' Pop said. 'What for?'

'For a holiday of course, ' Ma said. 'I think it would do us all good to get some sun.'

And so at the end of a rainy English August the Larkins - all ten of them, including little Oscar, the family's new addition - bundle into the old Rolls and cross the Channel to escape the hostile elements.

But far from being the balmy, sunny and perfick spot Ma Larkin hoped for, France proves less than welcoming to an eccentric English family. The tea's weak, the furniture breakable and the hotel manager is almost as hostile as the wind and the rain they've brought with them

And when the manager learns that Ma and Pop are unmarried yet sharing a room under his roof, the trouble really begins . . .

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0141029641
• ISBN13: 9780141029641
• Release Date: December 2006
• Publisher: Penguin UK
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 5.1" x 0.3" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

Holidays with the Larkins

At the end of a rainy, dreary August, the Larkins are all feeling a bit mopey and depressed so Pop decides that they need a holiday and suggests that they go to Brittany where his son-in-law, Charley, spent happy times as a child. With such a large family, they agree that it would be easier for everyone if they flew the Rolls Royce over too as it could accomodate all of them on their excursions. When they finally arrive at the small, shabby hotel, the owner, Madame Dupont, wrongly assumes that anyone who could afford to drive such a magnificent car, has to be a Mi'lord and treats Pop as such. The usual mix ups with food, drink and language occur and when the owner discovers, by means of their passports, that Ma and Pop aren't legally married, it's put down to the eccentricities of the English aristocracy. It's a very pleasant, amusing read with all of the lovable characters playing their parts.