How to Travel Incognito by Ludwig Bemelmans is a social drama steeped in an aura of faded French grandeur. From the creator of the beloved Madeline series for children, the work takes the form of a fictionalized, satirical memoir recounting the author's madcap adventures accompanying an eccentric Parisian nobleman on a road trip from Paris to Cannes in 1950s France.
Bemelmans first encounters the tall, lanky Count of St. Cucuface in the first-class compartment of a Paris-bound train. St. Cucuface is a charming, penniless aristocrat who subsists on cocktail-party fare and is known around town as one of the "authentic antiques of France." What the count lacks in money he makes up for in imagination and savoir faire. When the two experience difficulty with a dining reservation, St. Cucuface suggests that Bemelmans pose as "Prince de Bavière." Suddenly, all manner of doors fly open for them: restaurant table upgrades, lavish complimentary meals, and royalty discounts at the best hotel in Paris.
Embracing his new royal persona, Bemelmans mingles easily with foreign dignitaries, including the heavily bejeweled "Maharajah of Bengal-Something-or-other" and the jovial Madame l'Ambassadrice, wife of the U.S. ambassador. A cameo by the Duke of Windsor is cleverly tucked into a scene on the French Riviera. As his whimsical illustrations prove, Bemelmans is a keen observer of the leisure class making mischief.
Originally published in 1952, How to Travel Incognito is a nostalgic throwback to a post-World War II "time of plenty," a story the author crafted to "cheer up the sorry world." --Shahina Piyarali