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France Without Reservations is much more than "an impromptu travel guide." It is Mr. Thompson's travel diary of his 10-day trip through the south of France with his wife. The book is part novel, part travel guide; it describes some of their delightful unplanned adventures, yet also offers some hotel and restaurant recommendations for more cautious travelers.

Thompson and his wife rent a car and set off to enjoy their 20^th trip to France. Along the way, they revisit places they've been and discover new ones. They eat well and often, as is to be expected in this culinary delight of a country. They stay in all kinds of hotels, from 1^st class to chain motel. They speak virtually no French, yet they manage to accomplish everything they set out to do.

Each chapter equals one day on the road, and at the end of each, Thompson lists lodging, restaurants, and sites to consider in that day's villages. He regularly quotes prices to help you plan your trip, and offers money-saving tips as well as ideas for more extravagant activities. I really enjoyed the fact that he is still learning too; he makes some fairly expensive mistakes during the trip, which made the story more "real" to me. If he had known everything, I wouldn't be all that interested in reading about his adventures; they would have been too cut and dried.

If you're planning a trip to France and don't want to go by the book every minute, France Without Reservations is flexible enough to give you some good advice without giving everything away. Bon voyage !

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