After reading Paris to the Moon I was excited to find out there was a book that continued the story of Gopnik and his family. I really enjoyed learning about their move and adventures in NYC. It was fun to hear about how the children transitioned into American life.

I love love love this book.

Really beautiful book, though it doesn't particularly make me want to live in New York. Gopnik is such a great writer, though - he could write nutritional information on cereal boxes and I would read it.

I didn't love this nearly as much as I did "Paris to the Moon" (one of my favorite books ever). Maybe it's because I have my own issues re: living in NY; I don't know. I just found this much more difficult and less enjoyable of a read.

Loved it. Insights into and observations on life in Paris and NY, through adult and kids' eyes. I read it every few years and appreciate it more each time. I love Charlie Ravioli.

I'm putting this here for "Bumping into Mr. Ravioli," which is one of the funniest nonfiction pieces I read this semester. It is a great use of examining the particular to reach the universal. I've yet to read the other essays, but I'm looking forward to finding more of what this author has written.

An utterly gorgeous memoir in essays. I can't praise it highly enough. Read it with, or rather after, Paris to the Moon. Together they make a pair of great books that contain multitudes. For those who live in great cities or have ever wanted to, even just a little bit, even for just a little while.

Ugh. I had high hopes for this book considering how much I loved Paris to the Moon. I was hoping this would be similar but it was not. There are so many weird references and literary name drops that made no sense to me that I found myself asking - what the hell is he talking about? And not caring enough to figure it out. And unfortunately, Gopnik falls into the trap of so many NYers that have convinced themselves that the world revolves around NY, and everything about NY is unique and precious and couldn't possibly be happening anywhere else. And that the rest of us are just as enamored of NY as they are. Barf. If you read other reviews, you'll see most of the 5 star ratings come from fellow NYers who share his myopic view of the world.
Huge disappointment.

The first 100 or so pages of the book dragged, but as Gopnik got into the book, the vignettes become more telling and relatable in the Paris to the Moon sense. Well written and witty, but not a "can't put it down" read.

There are certainly bright spots here and there, but on the whole, this collection of essays does not have the coherence it purports to have. Often, one feel as if the book was an excuse to lump all of these disparate pieces together; after an essay or two, it ceases to be about a New York homecoming.

Not as good as From Paris to the Moon," but good. Definitely better, much,much, than the one on French food.

A good read for parents raising kids in New York. Although there is much more than his parenting experience, his best are his reflections on his children.

The last book I read was a novel about two early adolescent girls in 1950s NYC, and, since I try to toggle between fiction and non-, I decided this was the time to read a memoir about family life in NYC in the early 2000s. It was an interesting juxtaposition. In many ways, the NYC of the early 2020s is almost as distant and different from what Gopnik describes in the 2000s as the 2000s were from the 1950s. Honestly, that 50-year gap is way more pronounced in so many ways, but it was stunning how wide the 20 year gap is, not just for NYC but for every place in the US (and probably the world). The book was both sweet and thought provoking. Parts of if were incandescent, like the account of poor Bluey, the ill-fated betta, and the machinations involved in keeping the truth of his demise from the Gopnik's small daughter. Other parts, not so much. I really did not see the attraction of the adult parlor game involving the mafia and the villagers. But overall, it was a lovely read.