My parents always told me that sarcasm was the key to their marriage, and if you’re married, I think you’ll understand why. The Road to Villa Page written in equal parts by a husband and wife detailing their journey from Los Angeles to Southwestern France embodies that idea. Each chapter is broken into two parts, “His Story” and “Her Story”, and it perfectly emulates the dry, sarcastic banter that we love in shows like Full House and Everybody Loves Raymond.
This memoir, written by Cynthia and William Royce, follows them from their first visit to France on a vacation to settling in and becoming a part of their new community and culminates in the adoption of a baby girl. Beneath the lighthearted banter that will make you at least chuckle, there’s a story of two people with two dreams, and the love between them to make both happen. They work together to actualize Royce’s dream of a home in Dordogne, France, and Cynthia’s dream of having a child, and combine them into a beautiful life even better than they could have imagined.
The Road to Villa Page is an inspiration. These two people in their late 30’s start a journey that most resign themselves to only dreaming of, and the honest retelling of their road to their dream home, mistakes and all, reminds us that anything can happen if you’re willing to learn from your mistakes and keep working. I think that the Royce’s keep each other honest throughout this story, and the book is better for it. The humility in their writing, often through humor, makes their experiences so much more relatable. Cynthia and William aren’t some fantasy protagonists who go on a journey led by fate; they’re two people like you and me who dared to dream and found a way to make it happen.
I’d recommend this book for anyone who dares to dream.
