Don't call it a guide, Paris for Men (Editions du Chene via ACC Distribution for USA and Canada) curated by Thierry Richard with illustrations by Aseyn and photos by Juliette Ranck offers educated opinions on topics ranging from Cycling to Buying Cufflinks, Having a Cocktail Made for You (best places), Lightning the Fire not to neglect Legs Akimbo or 'Where to go for a pleasant view of this light dance of women's legs' (time to see film 'The man who loved women' by Truffaut) to name a few.

To broaden the palette Thierry Richard ponctuates Paris for Men with 'words from Parisiens like Emmanuel Rubin (Journalist) on 'Le Train Bleu', Nicolas Bedos (Playwright) on his 'Noon-Midnight' moments, Patrick Roger (Chocolatier) in 'Life Size' on Musee Rodin and its garden, Franck Baranger (Chef, Le Pantruche) in 'Sunday Martyr' on week-end shopping in espadrilles starting with a stop for espresso on corner of Rue des Martyrs and Rue Choron.

As a Breton, I paid special attention to Thierry Richard's take on 'Shucking oysters with friends' with list of places where to buy them or where to taste them.

He concludes his oyster bit with how to get the most out of them and lists 2 no-nos's:

-Never leave the open shells on a bed of ice, as the cold will neutralize their flavor. It's better to use algae that you've gotten from your oyster shop

-For seasoning, never use vinegar, which is too powerful, but only lemon, and sometimes just a touch of ground pepper

Thierry Richard's musings can also be found at Chroniques du Plaisir, his blog (in French only).

Hopefully I will have a chance to put 2 or 3 of his suggestions to the test during my 1 day in Paris, early September.