Perestroika in Paris by Jane Smiley

Monday, November 1 through Friday, November 19, 2021. Read by Jim Fleming.

Paras, short for “Perestroika,” is a spirited racehorse at a racetrack west of Paris. One afternoon at dusk, she finds the door of her stall open and wanders all the way to the City of Light. Soon she meets an elegant dog named Frida, who knows how to get by without attracting the attention of suspicious Parisians. And then Paras meets a human boy and discovers the ivy-walled house where the boy and his nearly-one-hundred-year-old great-grandmother live in seclusion. As the cold weather nears, the unlikeliest of friendships bloom. But how long can a runaway horse stay undiscovered in Paris? How long can a boy keep her hidden and all to himself?

(Alfred A Knopf; ISBN-10: 052552035X)

Theme: “Fibre de verre” by Paris Combo, Attraction, DRG Records; “I Love Paris” by Gypsy Jazz Caravan, Gypsy Jazz Caravan III