In Search of the Essence of Place is a memoir of Petr Král's experiences growing up in post-war Czechoslovakia and subsequent years in Paris. Armed only with his poetic sensibility, Král sets out to explore our relationship with the places that we inhabit and with the apparently unremarkable everyday objects, which often inform and enrich our lives. Král bears witness to Flaubert's observation that "in order for something to become interesting, we simply have to look at it for a long time". He reveals not only the inner life - the very essence - of mundane objects and places, but also simple yet profound truths about ourselves.