Books with insights on contemporary European life and culture

I'm a Francophile and can't read enough books about French culture. I was a history major and appreciate serious history, but since I've been to Paris many times I appreciate the irreverent, fun reads about French culture by Polly Platt: Savior Flair and French or Foe particularly. Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't be Wrong by Jean-Benoit Nadeau is excellent. Talk to the Snail (10 commandments for understanding the French), by Stephen Clark is hilarious. For light history I like anything by Antonia Frasier - her works on Marie Antoinette and Louis XIV are good.
A serious work on the French revolution is Citizen by Simon Scharma.

I have often wondered whether the most insightful/informative books about a country are written by native authors or outsiders looking in? Maybe it's six of one and half a dozen of the other.

I enjoyed, despite disagreeing with some of his ideas, "The Engish" by Jeremy Paxman. And of course Bill Bryson, in his "Notes from a Small Island", pretty much hit the nail on the head about the little everyday things that explain a lot about life in the UK.

Edit - forgot about Tim Parks' autobiographical books about living, working and raising a family in Northern Italy ie just outside Verona. They are not at all like the Frances Mayes' style of ex-pat books.

For an au courrant look at France, read Lucy Wadham's
The Secret Life of France published in 2009.

The champters on the politics of Sarkosy are particularly
relevant.

Champters? Hmmm, 'chapters'!

It's kind of a general survey of life, politics and economics on the continent, but because most Americans' formal education on European history ended with WWII, Tim Judt's "Postwar" is invaluable for anyone interested in modern Europe. If the names Konrad Adenauer and Robert Schuman (the French statesman, not the composer) don't mean anything to you, then you need to read this book. And even if you already know who they are... read this book anyway!

Watching thie English...The Hidden Rules of English Behaviour by Kate Fox

I on the lighter side, I recommend British humorist Danny Wallace's books:

Join Me

Yes Man

Friends Like These

All are contemporary non-fiction based on his real life experiences living in the UK, and traveling a bit through Europe and other parts of the world.

For France, check out:

Hot Sun, Cool Shadow: Savoring the Food, History, and Mystery of the Languedoc by Angela Murrills, a Brit who writes amusing anecdotes about the simple pleasures of life in France

A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle, written in the late 80's by an English immigrant; still very relevant and very entertaining

Adventures on the Wine Route: A Wine Buyer's Tour of France by Kermit Lynch, an opinionated, fascinating look inside the French wine world by a California wine importer

Another good one on France, or Paris more specifically, is Adam Gopnik's "Paris to the Moon". He goes beyond the superficiality of differences and, as the reporter he is, trys to find and explain the why of those differences while making his experiences very personal and relatable.

I like Linda's rhetorical question about outsider vs. native author which reminds me of another book by Bill Bryson. In "I'm a Stranger Here Myself" (US title, European title is different, but I forget what it is)Bryson, who is originally from the US but has lived in England for many years, gives both points of view, making hilarious observations on the US that only someone in his position could make (or get away with).

This is a great topic! I have been on several Rick Steves tours and I find that my fellow travelers have talked a lot on what they saw and how much they paid for things, but there isn't that much discussion on the subject of "what people here are like" which really interests me.

I also really liked "26 Million Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong" and "Paris to the Moon" mentioned by earlier bloggers. For Italy, "La Bella Figura" I thought was wonderful.

I do want to read "Rebus's Scotland". Is there a good one on Ireland, anyone? That's where I hope to go next.

You might look into the books called Culture/Shock. Some are just on cities and others are on the whole country.

I loved those books written by the Polly Platt, and if you are really interested in food, read the Julia Child book. Sixty Million Frenchmen Can't be wrong was very interesting.

I did read the Antonia Frasier book on Marie Antoinette before I left, but I didn't get around the Henry the VIII. If you are interested in Impressionism, your local library might have books or DVDs on the subject. I particularly use the children's section to get a quick feel for a character like Elizabeth or Napoleon. They are usually intended for middle school kids, but you get the basic facts, and as they are usually about 80 pages you can read them in a day.

If you ever do to the Netherlands, be sure to read the Undutchables.

The New Spaniards by John Hooper...an authoritative view on present-day Spain with enough history included to pull it all together.