A portmanteau bag is a classic vintage beauty that made absolute sense to include in Woman On The Wall.
Watch my latest TikTok video for a quick lesson on what exactly a portmanteau is, and why I included it in the novel:
@robinriversauthor #greenscreen #wordoftheday #writertok #frenchwords #novel ♬ Je te laisserai des mots – Patrick Watson
Today’s word of the day is portmanteau. It’s derived from the French word portemanteau (from porter, “to carry”, and manteau, “coat”), which once referred to a travelling case (luggage). Today it means a coat rack!
What’s A Portmanteau?
This piece of leather luggage often had a handle and opened in two equal parts. It’s the perfect addition to the novel because they were most popular in the late 1800s, and likely shoved in attics or cellars across Paris. This makes them less than fashionable, yet likely easy to scrounge up for carrying all kinds of interesting bits.
Why Does Marie Have One?
At the beginning of Woman On The Wall, we find Marie hauling around cans of Rinderbraten left by Nazis in Paris bunkers. She trades them for coffee she then gives to her team at the Louvre.
The bag, old-fashioned even in the 1940s, lets her get her haul contraband around town without too many questions.
Robin, You Have A Mis-spelling in the Video
Yes, yes I do. Autocorrect likes to remind me that I need to double and triple edit my work before posting. Today, I failed. I left it, though, because life is just like that — not quite perfect.
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