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A review by linneakarchibald
The Paris Hours by Alex George
4.0
4 STARS
I picked up this book after I heard Alex George speak on a panel during the 2021 Newburyport Literary Festival. It took me a while to get into it (I listened on audio, for what it's worth) because the language itself is much denser than I anticipated, similar to ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE by Anthony Doerr. The novel weaves together four storylines: Marcel Proust's housekeeper with a secret, an Armenian refugee who processes his trauma through puppet shows in the park, an artist running out of money and running up debts, and a journalist running away from his own traumatic stories.
Overall, I did enjoy this book, but I felt some storylines (the housekeeper and refugee) were more interesting than others and, as I said, it took a little while to get going. If you like Doerr's work, this would be a good fit for you.
I picked up this book after I heard Alex George speak on a panel during the 2021 Newburyport Literary Festival. It took me a while to get into it (I listened on audio, for what it's worth) because the language itself is much denser than I anticipated, similar to ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE by Anthony Doerr. The novel weaves together four storylines: Marcel Proust's housekeeper with a secret, an Armenian refugee who processes his trauma through puppet shows in the park, an artist running out of money and running up debts, and a journalist running away from his own traumatic stories.
Overall, I did enjoy this book, but I felt some storylines (the housekeeper and refugee) were more interesting than others and, as I said, it took a little while to get going. If you like Doerr's work, this would be a good fit for you.