From the book A Paris Apartment by Michelle Gable

"As every writer, poet, painter, and, yes, furniture assessor knew, it [Paris] was the perfect place for escape." pg. 3

"Our favorite it Tortoni's, the place where the smart and literary gather. We often site with Emile Zola. Sometimes Dumas fils joins us. All the good boulevardiers are there too, always at the ready with a clever comment, the perfect mot juste." pg. 167

"We sip beer or cassis with sparkling water or absinthe. We talk of politics and literature. We mock Republican officials, unless they are with us, in which case we praise their efforts. I leave these meals feeling cultured and quite unlike the convent girl who came to Paris eighteen months ago." pg. 167 

• boulevardiers

1. A sophisticated, socially active man who frequents fashionable places.

2. A cocktail made of bourbon or rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, and bitters, often garnished with a lemon or orangepeel.

• mot juste

         n. pl. mots justes (mō zhüst′)

Exactly the right word or expression.

"Intentions! Oh, for the devil are they!
You can have them. They can be pure or good. In your mind you will execute them into a very precise manner with the purest of hearts. Then something happens and shoots it all to hell. Does that make a person any less good? I don't think it does." pg. 271

' "Tu es bell." 
"Merci." April fake-curtsied. It was funny, this language. In America you told someone they looked pretty. In France you told them they were pretty, straight up. No looking, no appearing, no temorary condition." ' pg. 321