"Americans often look back on Paris between the World Wars as a charming escape from the problems and politics of home. In this bold and original study, Brooke Blower shows that nothing could be further from the truth. Drawing on a range of sources in French as well as English, she uncovers the breadth of American activities in the capital, the lessons visitors drew from their stay, and the passionate responses they elicited from others. For many sojourners-not just for those most famous expatriates- Paris served as an important crossroads, a place where Americans reimagined their position in the world and grappled with what it meant to be American in the new century, even as they came up against conflicting interpretations of American power by others.

Includes maps of: Paris.

The age of world wars -- The specter of Americanization. Triumphant arrivals ; Reluctant hosts -- Parisian cultural politics. The Sacco-Vanzetti riots ; Prefect Chiappe's purging of Paris -- American political culture. Legionnaires on parade ; The expatriates reconsidered -- The beginning of American innocence.