‘Jayne Tuttle’s writing is a delicious delight.’
—Christos Tsiolkas

Paris. The beauty. The grime. The colours and thoughts and songs and sounds and children and dogs. The taste of strawberries, the sky, first métro, last métro, the bells, the dreams … 

In her bold and uncompromising memoir, Paris or Die, Jayne Tuttle explores the extremes of not just Paris, but her own existence.

Seduced by the city of lights, Jayne wanted to eat, drink and feel everything that Paris had to offer, away from the tourist sites. She wanted most of all to forget her Australian roots and live her life as a true Parisian. Jayne found herself in a vibrant and dizzying neighbourhood, studying at a gruelling theatre school and falling in love with a Frenchman too beautiful to be real.

Paris or Die delves, with intense detail, into what it was like to be young and naïve in Paris, to grieve there, to grow up there and try to become an artist. Jayne wanted to disappear into the culture if it killed her. And one bizarre night, it nearly did.

Jayne’s writing vibrates with an immediacy that lifts you off the page and into a Paris far beyond the postcards. Paris or Die is a headlong plunge into not just life in Paris, but life itself.

Jayne Tuttle is a writer who splits her time between France and Australia. After graduating from the Lecoq Theatre School, she lived in Paris for more than a decade, working internationally as an actor and writer and publishing stories about life in Paris in newspapers, guides and magazines. She currently works for Paris advertising agencies as a bilingual copywriter.

‘By turns madcap and heartbreaking, Paris or Die is a witty and wise reflection on the power of cities to help us become ourselves. I devoured it and I can’t wait to read more from my new favorite writer.’—Lauren Elkin, author of Flâneuse: Women Walk the City, contributor to The New York Times, Vogue, Le Monde, The White Review

‘A vivid memoir of damage, grace and healing which manages to be funny, irreverent and moving all at once.’—Luke Davies, script writer of Lion, Candy

‘An electric rollercoaster ride through the streets of Paris, this is also a moving memoir of love, exploration and loss—at times utterly joyful, at times gut-wrenching and always fierce and beautifully written.’—Jemma Birrell, Director of Sydney Writers’ Festival Director, 2012–2016

‘A riveting, moving, funny and at times shocking memoir about a young Australian woman whose dream journey to the city of light turns into a nightmare. I loved it.’—Jennifer Higgie, writer and editor Frieze Magazine

‘Moving, raw and more than a little bit sexy, I practically inhaled this book about a woman determined to grab on to art, love and life with everything she’s got in the world’s most romantic city.’—Rachel Power, author of The Divided Heart

‘Joyous, sexy and compelling … a wonderful read.’—Paddy O’Reilly, author of Peripheral Vision, The Wonders

‘I was entranced from start to finish. A tantalising tour through the life of a young, spontaneous, in love, in lust, foreigner whose inimitable joie de vivre opens her to a Paris that yields its local charms, its particular customs and its unexpected dangers …’—Martine Murray, author of The Last Summer of Ada Bloom, How to Make a Bird

Download the introduction and first chapter of Paris or Die here.

Want to be one of the first to read Paris or Die? Send an email to sarahhollingsworth@hardiegrant.com with ‘PARIS OR DIE’ in the subject line for your chance to receive an advance reading copy.