Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I picked this up on-sight, recognizing Besson’s name. I adored “Lie With Me,” I mean I was simply gripped the whole time, could not put it down. That book was translated by Molly Ringwald, of Molly Ringwald fame, and it was her first published translated work. Frank Wynne translated this book, who seems to have translated quite a few works, including (after this, from what I can tell), other works from Besson.
I spent the first third of the book wondering why I struggled with it. I kept bumping against the translation, or what I thought might be the translation. The book is written in first person, and for one section via letters, but the dialogue is offset by “You said:” or “I say:” and such. I found this really bizarre, and after finishing had to go back to “Lie With Me” to see if anything similar happens (it does, though a little more naturally as it is typically via name).
I left the first section of this book a little unimpressed. I felt it was hard to focus on, hard to get interested in, and I felt I had an idea of what might happen. Part of this was confirmed when a character is sent toVerdun, a well known and deadly WWI battle.
Overall, I enjoyed the book once we got to the epistolary section, and I can appreciate why the first portion of the story is needed. Nonetheless, it did not work nearly as well for me as “Lie With Me,” which blew me away. I found this a collection of sometimes beautiful phrases, but with a story that I did not find surprising.
Some parts that I quite liked (very light spoilers):
p74-75 - I am a man without ancestors, without siblings, without descendants. I am of this world, but with no ties to this world. I am someone who does not know where he comes from, who has no one with whom to share his journey, who will leave no trace behind. When I die, my name will not be all that dies with me, my whole existence will be obliterated, consigned to oblivion. No one will remember me. … will you be the one who will remember me?
p86 - Taking leave of my mother is first and foremost a physical act. Arms must give up their embrace of the other’s body, hands must uncouple, the touch of skin on skin must end, eyes must free themselves form the other’s gaze. One must withdraw, and as one withdraws, everything crumbles, as though one can live only through the other, as though one cannot live without the other.
It is a physical loss, a life fading, something bleeding away, a force that cannot be contained.
p115 - And is not my suffering itself astounding? The pain of being separated from him. He was hardly mine when he was taken from me again. And no one can tell me when he will be given back to me. You know, it takes great love to weather such pain. Great love. If I try to control my emotions, the pain will overwhelm me, it will sweep me aside. You must understand that I do not wish to control anything, on the contrary, I wish to give myself up to this flux.
p124 - I have come to the conviction that those who love and those who are happy are not the same. I believe in fact—forgive me—the love is unavoidably the root of unhappiness.
p136 - I want to say that it is perhaps best if you forget me, that it is better for you to turn toward the future, because you have your whole life ahead of you; that you find new loves who will not make you suffer needlessly. … To love someone is, above all, to protect him from blows that might mortally wound him. To be loved is to be able to expect the loved one to save himself before it is too late, to cut off his infected arm so that the gangrene does not spread and kill him. … I will love you to my last breath.
I spent the first third of the book wondering why I struggled with it. I kept bumping against the translation, or what I thought might be the translation. The book is written in first person, and for one section via letters, but the dialogue is offset by “You said:” or “I say:” and such. I found this really bizarre, and after finishing had to go back to “Lie With Me” to see if anything similar happens (it does, though a little more naturally as it is typically via name).
I left the first section of this book a little unimpressed. I felt it was hard to focus on, hard to get interested in, and I felt I had an idea of what might happen. Part of this was confirmed when a character is sent to
Overall, I enjoyed the book once we got to the epistolary section, and I can appreciate why the first portion of the story is needed. Nonetheless, it did not work nearly as well for me as “Lie With Me,” which blew me away. I found this a collection of sometimes beautiful phrases, but with a story that I did not find surprising.
Some parts that I quite liked (very light spoilers):
p74-75 - I am a man without ancestors, without siblings, without descendants. I am of this world, but with no ties to this world. I am someone who does not know where he comes from, who has no one with whom to share his journey, who will leave no trace behind. When I die, my name will not be all that dies with me, my whole existence will be obliterated, consigned to oblivion. No one will remember me. … will you be the one who will remember me?
p86 - Taking leave of my mother is first and foremost a physical act. Arms must give up their embrace of the other’s body, hands must uncouple, the touch of skin on skin must end, eyes must free themselves form the other’s gaze. One must withdraw, and as one withdraws, everything crumbles, as though one can live only through the other, as though one cannot live without the other.
It is a physical loss, a life fading, something bleeding away, a force that cannot be contained.
p115 - And is not my suffering itself astounding? The pain of being separated from him. He was hardly mine when he was taken from me again. And no one can tell me when he will be given back to me. You know, it takes great love to weather such pain. Great love. If I try to control my emotions, the pain will overwhelm me, it will sweep me aside. You must understand that I do not wish to control anything, on the contrary, I wish to give myself up to this flux.
p124 - I have come to the conviction that those who love and those who are happy are not the same. I believe in fact—forgive me—the love is unavoidably the root of unhappiness.
p136 - I want to say that it is perhaps best if you forget me, that it is better for you to turn toward the future, because you have your whole life ahead of you; that you find new loves who will not make you suffer needlessly. … To love someone is, above all, to protect him from blows that might mortally wound him. To be loved is to be able to expect the loved one to save himself before it is too late, to cut off his infected arm so that the gangrene does not spread and kill him. … I will love you to my last breath.
I picked this up because I thought it’d be cool to read cause I read Proust, but wtf was that ending
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
sad
Vincent de l'Étoile, adolescent d'une famille parisienne aisée, fait la rencontre quasiment simultanée de deux hommes qui vont changer sa vie. Marcel Proust, auteur renommé, 45 ans, et ami précieux qui saura voir une valeur extraordinaire dans les idées du jeune homme. Arthur Vallès, soldat de 21 ans qui a vécu son enfance aux côtés de Vincent, mais dont la différence de classe les a maintenus séparés jusqu'à ce que la guerre fasse révéler des sentiments inavouables en ces temps.
Ce roman m'a beaucoup ému. Les émotions tranchantes qui peu à peu envahissent ce jeune homme détaché m'ont atteint droit au cœur: son amitié grandissante et potentiellement scandaleuse pour un homme qui a près du triple de son âge, et son amour interdite pour un soldat dont la vie ne tient qu'à un fil. Ce bref roman, c'est une écriture puissante, des sentiments que chacun de nous a ressentis sous une forme ou une autre. Alors certes, certain-e-s reprocheront sans doute à Besson d'avoir écrit son roman dans une prose qui ne reflète pas la manière de penser d'un adolescent de seize ans. Vincent est emprunt d'une sagesse que l'on acquiert bien plus tard dans la vie, c'est certain. Mais étonnamment, cela ne m'a pas dérangé, parce que je vois cette oeuvre comme un hybride entre le roman et la poésie, où la beauté de la prose a tout autant d'importance que les évènements et les sentiments qu'elle relate. Bien que je pense que ce roman se suffise à lui-même, j'aurais presque envie d'en savoir plus sur le passé des protagonistes, particulièrement l'enfance de Vincent et Arthur. La révélation finale m'a parue un poil attendue, d'où mon évaluation à quatre étoiles et non cinq.
Je suis très curieux de lire d'autres livres de Besson après ce premier roman prometteur.
Ce roman m'a beaucoup ému. Les émotions tranchantes qui peu à peu envahissent ce jeune homme détaché m'ont atteint droit au cœur: son amitié grandissante et potentiellement scandaleuse pour un homme qui a près du triple de son âge, et son amour interdite pour un soldat dont la vie ne tient qu'à un fil. Ce bref roman, c'est une écriture puissante, des sentiments que chacun de nous a ressentis sous une forme ou une autre. Alors certes, certain-e-s reprocheront sans doute à Besson d'avoir écrit son roman dans une prose qui ne reflète pas la manière de penser d'un adolescent de seize ans. Vincent est emprunt d'une sagesse que l'on acquiert bien plus tard dans la vie, c'est certain. Mais étonnamment, cela ne m'a pas dérangé, parce que je vois cette oeuvre comme un hybride entre le roman et la poésie, où la beauté de la prose a tout autant d'importance que les évènements et les sentiments qu'elle relate. Bien que je pense que ce roman se suffise à lui-même, j'aurais presque envie d'en savoir plus sur le passé des protagonistes, particulièrement l'enfance de Vincent et Arthur. La révélation finale m'a parue un poil attendue, d'où mon évaluation à quatre étoiles et non cinq.
Je suis très curieux de lire d'autres livres de Besson après ce premier roman prometteur.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No