A perfect Christmas gift!

Ever since I can remember, I have received plenty of Christmas presents, except perhaps when I was a child when what I got was limited to an orange and some candies. My godparents, who owned a grocery store, once gave me a toy airplane that I really cherished… 

The rest of the time, Christmas presents were objects that my wife and I purchased together, killing any element of surprise as we opened the package on Christmas Day. It was until this very Christmas Eve, when my daughter-in-law found for me a brand-new looking, used book about planning and architecture of French ski resorts. 

She couldn’t have picked a better book for me, and the fact that she stumbled on it at a local store makes it even more remarkable. This richly illustrated nine pound volume tells the story of French winter sports resorts built between 1920 and 1980, with emphasis on places like Megève, Courchevel 1850, Flaine, Avoriaz, Les Arcs and Les Karellis. 

The authors show how planners and architects addressed their real estate developments with solutions specific to each location. For each place, the book covers a time span ranging from the conception to the birth and the completion of these destination resorts, detailing multi-family to single family dwellings and common areas, plus including original drafts and an impressive array of interior photographs. 

I’ve already began to read it and can’t wait to dig further into it!