A review by notesofacrocodile
Simple Passion by Annie Ernaux

5.0

what a pleasure it is to read annie ernaux's writing, so intimately rendered! in this short piece, she tells us of her passionate affair with a married man. it is important to understand that this isn't about the man or his person. rather, it is about the effect that his existence in her life brings about; pure overwhelming passion: white-hot and simmering underneath her skin. annie ernaux's writing always takes care to remind us of how explosive and all-consuming her emotions are: she may try to put it into words but we as the reader should keep in mind that it is so much more than what words or verbal language could ever seek to demonstrate. her prose, regardless, oozes with want and yearning, and as it nears the end of this affair, it transitions into a ghostly despair, and then acceptance. this felt like her personal diary, and not like an unpublished piece because of how painfully personal and viscerally raw it felt. this was short, but it certainly hit all the right notes.