Book review: The Black Notebook – I love France 205

The Black Notebook

 

the-black-notebook

Author: Patrick Modiano
Translator: Mark Polizzotti
Publisher: Mariner Books/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
US Release date: 9/27/2016
L’herbe des nuits
was first released in French in 2012
Pages: 144
ISBN: 978-0544779822
also available as ebook
Genre:

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MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS BOOK

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You read the first paragraph, and you know right away who wrote The Black Notebook:

And yet, it was no dream. Sometimes I catch myself saying those words in the street, as if hearing someone else’s voice. A toneless voice. Names come back to me, certain faces, certain details. No one left to talk with about it. One or two witnesses must still be alive. But they’ve probably forgotten the whole thing. And in the end, I wonder if there really were any witnesses.

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Book review: French Rhapsody – I love France 203

French Rhapsody

 

french-rhapsody

Author:
Antoine Laurain
Translators:
Emily Boyce & Jane Aitken
Publisher:
Gallic Books

US Release date: Oct 11, 2016
Rhapsodie française
was first released in French in January 2016
Pages: 240
ISBN: 978-1910477304
also available as ebook
Genre:  literary fiction

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MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS BOOK

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When I participated in BEA 16 in Chicago a few months ago, there was  a lot of hype around Antoine Laurain, a French author I had not yet read! So before reading the book I got there, I decided to read and review one published earlier, The President’s Hat. I really enjoyed it and was eager then to discover his  latest, French Rhapsody. Like some other readers though, I’m a bit disappointed. There are however some good things in this short novel. Click to continue reading

Review: Meursault, contre-enquête – I love France 202

Meursault, contre-enquête

meursault-contre-enquete

Auteur: Kamel Daoud
Éditions:
Actes Sud

Parution:
2014
Pages:
155
ISBN:
978–2-330-03372-9
Genre:
Roman

prix Goncourt du premier roman – 2015
prix des Cinq continents de la Francophonie – 2014
prix François-Mauriac – 2014

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À MON AVIS

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To my English speaking readers:
scroll down to read a short recap and the synopsis.
It was published in an English translation in 2015, as
The Meursault Investigation (Other Press).
It has recently been longlisted for the 2016 National Translation Awards (NTA) in Poetry and Prose Click to continue reading