All of the architectural wonders described in this book exist in the city of Paris. Oddly enough, the most famous Parisian monument, La Tour Eiffel, or the Eiffel Tower to English speakers, doesn’t figure into the story. But plenty of other beautiful structures feature prominently, from the Gothic masterpiece, the Cathédrale Notre Dame, where the story’s wild climax takes place, to the lesser known Russian church where Rudee, one of the main characters, lives.
When Mac first arrives in Paris, she meets one of the bouquinistes, the booksellers whose stalls line the river Seine on both sides. While not known for their appearance, the book stalls are a longstanding presence in the city and are great places to find unexpected treasures and meet some truly interesting local characters. Parisians are very proud of their historic city, and Jerome, the bookseller Mac meets, is no exception. He points out the beautiful Pont Neuf, one of thirty-seven bridges that cross the river throughout the city, and remarks upon the fact that the “new bridge,” as the name translates from French, is in fact one of the oldest in the city. Mac is taken with the bridge even in a downpour, and it’s a location she returns to in a very dramatic scene later in the book. If you look at the statue of Henry IV, you’ll see that his horse’s hooves are in the air. Legend has it that this means that the rider died in battle; if the hooves are on the ground, the rider died in bed or perhaps in the middle of a high-calorie feast.
The first stop on what will prove to be a very eccentric tour of the monuments of Paris is at the Église Russe, the Russian church where Rudee lives and plays the organ. While Rudee and the composers whose music he loves are fictional, the church, located on a quiet street in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, is real and very beautiful. And, yes, Picasso did get married there to a Russian ballerina, Olga Khokhlova!
Mac’s school group is staying in the 5th arrondissement, in an area known as the Latin Quarter. It’s one of the oldest parts of the city, but home to probably the youngest residents, including the students at the Sorbonne, the city’s most prestigious university. The arrondisements, by the way, are the twenty districts that the city is divided into, and if you look at a map you’ll see that they’re laid out in a spiral, starting with the first arrondisement where the Louvre Museum is located. Allô, Mona Lisa!
When Mac comes upon the “Lighten Up!” festivities, they’re taking place on the world’s widest boulevard, the fabulous Champs Élysées, in view of the Arc de Triomphe. When you see the arch in photographs, its majestic shape is likely the first thing you notice, and when you read about it, its history as the home to the tomb of the unknown soldier is always mentioned, but to Parisians, the Arc de Triomphe represents something else: one of the worst traffic nightmares in all of Paris! If you’re a local, it’s called l’étoile, which means “the star,” because if you look at it from above, the streets leading to the arch look like a star. The drivers, and especially the taxi drivers, seem to treat this roundabout as an opportunity to drive as fast and furiously as humanly possible so they can get on with the business of pursuing the next café au lait!
The first of many architecture-related crimes that Mac sees in the story takes place at the domed church at Les Invalides, a vast military museum commissioned by Louis IV, the “Sun King,” that does contain the tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte, who is buried in six coffins, one inside the other. The golden dome of the church is visible from many places around Paris, and happily, the greatest concern that Parisians have for it is the expense of having it repainted!
Les Halles is an area of Paris that housed a huge marketplace from about the twelfth century until the early 1970s, when it was torn down. The market did move, but not underground as it does in our story.
Gargoyles figure prominently in the story and have a long history in France and elsewhere. They are often carvings of mythological creatures found on the edges of buildings and at one time, before drainpipes were common, they served the purpose of diverting water from the sides of the buildings. Gargoyles, like the grotesque-looking ones on the Notre Dame Cathedral, were thought to scare people into attending church!
The Place de la Bastille is one of the most important landmarks in all of France. It represents the place of origin of the French Revolution. The golden “Spirit of Freedom” statue remains atop the July Column, balanced delicately on one foot. On Bastille Day, celebrations featuring fireworks, parades, and concerts take place all over the country and around the world.
The Paris underground, or catacombs, is a maze of hundreds of miles of tunnels, originally mined for the stone that made buildings like the Louvre and the Cathédrale Notre Dame. Right beneath the streets, all sorts of strange wonders are revealed: graffiti from the French Revolution; bunkers that hid everyone from the Nazis to the members of the French Resistance in the Second World War; the leftovers of all-night rave parties; and indeed, stacks of bones from over 1,200 years ago up to the Revolution. You can visit the sewers officially, but most of the underground is forbidden to explore, although many do.
The Cathédrale Notre Dame is one of the jewels of Paris, a shining example of Gothic architecture, built beginning over eight hundred years ago. Lots of royalty have been married and buried here, and the Victor Hugo novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame is set there. One brave fellow walked on a tightrope between the two towers. Not encouraged by the authorities!