Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Un libro strano e spiazzante, che all'inizio sembra un po' stucchevole per la sua pretesa di essere scritto usando il linguaggio di un bambino di dieci anni quasi analfabeta.
Poi la forza della storia e dei personaggi, incredibilmente umani nel loro totale disadattamento alle regole imposte della civiltà, ti prende e ti porta fino in fondo, fino all'inevitabile morte di Madame Rosa.
Divertente, straziante, bellissimo.
Poi la forza della storia e dei personaggi, incredibilmente umani nel loro totale disadattamento alle regole imposte della civiltà, ti prende e ti porta fino in fondo, fino all'inevitabile morte di Madame Rosa.
Divertente, straziante, bellissimo.
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
بلاخره تونستم یه کتاب از رومن گاری بخونم. ای کاش کمی هنر کلمات داشتم تا دینمو ادا کنم به این کتاب. اما حیف. ندارم. خلاصه کتاب چیزی نیست جز عشق یه پسر حرامزاده و مسلمان به مادر ناتنی و جهودش. کتاب سعی نمی‌کنه فراتر از این بره و پلات به خصوصی هم دنبال نمی‌کنه. فقط باید همراه شخصیت‌ها باشیم و از دیالوگ‌های مغزدارشون لذت ببریم. استعدادی که گاری توی نوشتن داره برام خیلی دلنشینه. نامحسوس و ساده تصویری از روابط می‌سازه که انگار قبلا خواننده تجربه‌ش کرده. در آخر هم چند قطره‌ای اشک ریختم. ترجمه کتاب هم بسیار خوب بود.
4,5
J'adore Romain Gary et la voix de ce jeune narrateur m'a vraiment plu, parfois faire rire et d'autres pleurer. Un regard sans concession sur le Paris de l'époque et sur la misère extrême dans laquelle certains vivent dans l'indifférence générale. Une plume inimitable!
J'adore Romain Gary et la voix de ce jeune narrateur m'a vraiment plu, parfois faire rire et d'autres pleurer. Un regard sans concession sur le Paris de l'époque et sur la misère extrême dans laquelle certains vivent dans l'indifférence générale. Une plume inimitable!
fast-paced
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
1 : critique en Français
2 : review in English
1 : critique en Français
Une lecture vraiment difficile et mitigée
Après des mésaventures juste pour trouver ce livre, j’eusse enfin une copie en mains. Le début de lecture a mis un ton mélangeant la graveté du sujet mais aussi des phrases drôles, même super drôles, car Momo, ou Mohamed, du haut de son jeune âge a une « grande expérience », une phrase comme d’autres, qu’il a emprunté à un de ses amis plus âgés.
Ce Momo, donc, est enfant d’une prostituée et vit chez Mme Rosa, une prostituée retraitée qui a ouvert une sorte de refuge pour des enfants « nés de travers » comme Momo les appelle, c’est à dire, laissés là par des mères prostituées, en peur des instances publiques.
Elle est Juive, malade, et traumatisée, hantée par ses souvenirs d’Auschwitz. Mohamed est musulman non pratiquant, qui se pose pleins de questions sur sa culture, ses origines, la place des religions dans les relations humaines…
La lecture de ce livre fut très très difficile, et loin des repas : que ce soient des actes que Momo a fait pour recevoir de l’attention, ou prendre soin des autres enfants, plus jeunes, ou de Mme Rosa, le point commun est un nombre de triggers de la scatophobie (aussi connue sous le terme coprophobie), et pour moi, la complication de l’émétophobie qui se lance avec.
Elle fut aussi mitigée : Momo ne manque ni de vision philosophique dans ses propos, mais tandis que parfois il est tendre avec Mme Rosa, d’autres fois il en dit des choses dénigrantes, par ex les répétitions de son poids.
Il est tantôt enfantin (normal, il a dans les 10 ans env.), tantôt plus sage.
« La vie devant soi » est un titre qui se comprends qu’à la fin, une fin à la fois tragique et touchante, mais il aura fallu passer par pleins d’aléas, tous largement en dehors de mes zones de conforts littéraires.
J’ai aimé son acceptation de gens souvent marginalisés en société : les prostitué-e-s et les trans (ce que je comprend du personnage travesti en transition?) , mais le mélange de tendresse et de mépris m’ont bien agacés.
J’y ai donné 5/10 sur mon blog, ce qui fait donc 2.5* ici
----
2 : review in English
A really difficult and mixed read
Book read as part of "common reading" for October 2023, at LucieBulle's book club.
Warning : adult material.
This novel was translated into English : The Life Before Us.
Paris, Belleville district, 1970s. Momo, aged ten, lives in a boarding house specially created for kids who were "born crooked", the words he uses for the children of prostitutes, at a time when this was so frowned upon, that public assistance would have intervened to remove all these children and place them elsewhere, especially since Ms. Rosa, the creator of this particular shelter, had also been a prostitute.
She is also a survivor of Auschwitz, and thus, Momo sees her prey to both her traumas, and her failing sick body - which pushes the doctor to want to have her hospitalized, against the wishes of Mrs. Rosa, who doesn't want not become a vegetable, forced to live.
Momo lacks neither philosophical vision, from his young age but his 'great experience', nor humor; However, despite long passages that are very pleasant, even funny, to read, his views of life and the multitude of people, religious and/or cultural barriers, but also the acceptance of different people, depending on the case, there also has passages that are very difficult to read: whether these are actions that Momo did to receive attention, or to take care of the other, younger children, or of Mrs. Rosa, the common point is a number of triggers of the scatophobia (also known as coprophobia), and for me, the complication of emetophobia that comes with it.
So, I had to read it away from meals, and rush through those personally difficult moments to swallow with my eyes. On the other hand, the narrative style, often with very crude dialogue; the built suspense, a child's unique view of the world and the people around him are all well portrayed. Also, the author, via Momo, rather takes the positive side of accepting people who are often marginalized: prostitutes, but also homosexuals and Trans people - but given that the character in the novel is in transition and 'transvestite' I assumes that the term Trans did not exist at the time Gary/Ajar wrote and published this novel.
Certainly, certain words sometimes come back often, while our author with 7 names was able to find original ways to vary and avoid it, this didn't really bother me, given that the narrator is a child. On the other hand, I don't know if children Momo's age would have used certain more complex words, several seemed out of character to me.
I also have some doubts about the approach to obesity: that of Mrs. Rosa is very regularly repeated and sometimes I have the feeling that it was done with denigration, while others that doesn't sound like it to me at all, so it's hard for me to decide.
I wanted to like this novel more than my 5/10, but I have to face the facts: I had too much trouble reading it, and although I liked the ending (very sad, but at the same time fair), I cannot give it any further credit. This novel, as a whole, is well outside my literary habits and comfort zones, it has at least these merits.
2 : review in English
1 : critique en Français
Une lecture vraiment difficile et mitigée
Après des mésaventures juste pour trouver ce livre, j’eusse enfin une copie en mains. Le début de lecture a mis un ton mélangeant la graveté du sujet mais aussi des phrases drôles, même super drôles, car Momo, ou Mohamed, du haut de son jeune âge a une « grande expérience », une phrase comme d’autres, qu’il a emprunté à un de ses amis plus âgés.
Ce Momo, donc, est enfant d’une prostituée et vit chez Mme Rosa, une prostituée retraitée qui a ouvert une sorte de refuge pour des enfants « nés de travers » comme Momo les appelle, c’est à dire, laissés là par des mères prostituées, en peur des instances publiques.
Elle est Juive, malade, et traumatisée, hantée par ses souvenirs d’Auschwitz. Mohamed est musulman non pratiquant, qui se pose pleins de questions sur sa culture, ses origines, la place des religions dans les relations humaines…
La lecture de ce livre fut très très difficile, et loin des repas : que ce soient des actes que Momo a fait pour recevoir de l’attention, ou prendre soin des autres enfants, plus jeunes, ou de Mme Rosa, le point commun est un nombre de triggers de la scatophobie (aussi connue sous le terme coprophobie), et pour moi, la complication de l’émétophobie qui se lance avec.
Elle fut aussi mitigée : Momo ne manque ni de vision philosophique dans ses propos, mais tandis que parfois il est tendre avec Mme Rosa, d’autres fois il en dit des choses dénigrantes, par ex les répétitions de son poids.
Il est tantôt enfantin (normal, il a dans les 10 ans env.), tantôt plus sage.
« La vie devant soi » est un titre qui se comprends qu’à la fin, une fin à la fois tragique et touchante, mais il aura fallu passer par pleins d’aléas, tous largement en dehors de mes zones de conforts littéraires.
J’ai aimé son acceptation de gens souvent marginalisés en société : les prostitué-e-s et les trans (ce que je comprend du personnage travesti en transition?) , mais le mélange de tendresse et de mépris m’ont bien agacés.
J’y ai donné 5/10 sur mon blog, ce qui fait donc 2.5* ici
----
2 : review in English
A really difficult and mixed read
Book read as part of "common reading" for October 2023, at LucieBulle's book club.
Warning : adult material.
This novel was translated into English : The Life Before Us.
Paris, Belleville district, 1970s. Momo, aged ten, lives in a boarding house specially created for kids who were "born crooked", the words he uses for the children of prostitutes, at a time when this was so frowned upon, that public assistance would have intervened to remove all these children and place them elsewhere, especially since Ms. Rosa, the creator of this particular shelter, had also been a prostitute.
She is also a survivor of Auschwitz, and thus, Momo sees her prey to both her traumas, and her failing sick body - which pushes the doctor to want to have her hospitalized, against the wishes of Mrs. Rosa, who doesn't want not become a vegetable, forced to live.
Momo lacks neither philosophical vision, from his young age but his 'great experience', nor humor; However, despite long passages that are very pleasant, even funny, to read, his views of life and the multitude of people, religious and/or cultural barriers, but also the acceptance of different people, depending on the case, there also has passages that are very difficult to read: whether these are actions that Momo did to receive attention, or to take care of the other, younger children, or of Mrs. Rosa, the common point is a number of triggers of the scatophobia (also known as coprophobia), and for me, the complication of emetophobia that comes with it.
So, I had to read it away from meals, and rush through those personally difficult moments to swallow with my eyes. On the other hand, the narrative style, often with very crude dialogue; the built suspense, a child's unique view of the world and the people around him are all well portrayed. Also, the author, via Momo, rather takes the positive side of accepting people who are often marginalized: prostitutes, but also homosexuals and Trans people - but given that the character in the novel is in transition and 'transvestite' I assumes that the term Trans did not exist at the time Gary/Ajar wrote and published this novel.
Certainly, certain words sometimes come back often, while our author with 7 names was able to find original ways to vary and avoid it, this didn't really bother me, given that the narrator is a child. On the other hand, I don't know if children Momo's age would have used certain more complex words, several seemed out of character to me.
I also have some doubts about the approach to obesity: that of Mrs. Rosa is very regularly repeated and sometimes I have the feeling that it was done with denigration, while others that doesn't sound like it to me at all, so it's hard for me to decide.
I wanted to like this novel more than my 5/10, but I have to face the facts: I had too much trouble reading it, and although I liked the ending (very sad, but at the same time fair), I cannot give it any further credit. This novel, as a whole, is well outside my literary habits and comfort zones, it has at least these merits.