Inspired by Orwell, a brilliant portrait of the underbelly of contemporary Paris through the eyes of a young waiter scraping a living in the city.
A waiter's job is to deceive you. They want you to believe in a luxurious calm because on the other side of that door... is hell.
Edward Chisholm's spellbinding memoir of his time as a Parisian waiter takes you below the surface of one of the most iconic cities in the world and right into its glorious underbelly.
The waiter inhabits a world of inhuman hours, snatched sleep and dive bars; scraping by on coffee, bread and cigarettes, often under sadistic managers, with a wage so low you're fighting your colleagues for tips.
It's physically demanding, frequently humiliating and incredibly competitive. And with a cast of thieves, narcissists, ex-Legionnaires, paperless immigrants and drug dealers, it makes for a compelling and eye-opening read.