Reviews and Comments

Benoît Huron

benoithuron@bookwyrm.social

Joined 1 year, 4 months ago

I talk too much.

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Les années (French language, 2010) 5 stars

« La photo en noir et blanc d'une petite fille en maillot de bain foncé, …

Une coulée suspendue

5 stars

Les Années évoque dans un style limpide le passage du temps et l'impact des changements sociaux sur l'individu. Dans cette « autobiographie impersonnelle », Annie Ernaud s'appuie sur une série chronologique d'images personnelles, tremplins du souvenir, pour restituer la réalité vécue, la spécificité de l'époque de chacune d'entre elles.

Dans cette « coulée suspendue », c'est peut-être l'évocation des repas de famille qui fait de ce livre un chef-d'œuvre – c'est ici que la rumeur du temps se fait la plus convaincante, la plus puissante.

The pale blue eye (2006, HarperCollins Publishers) 3 stars

From the critically acclaimed author of Mr. Timothy comes an ingenious tale of murder and …

Outstanding

3 stars

“The Pale Blue Eye” is an outstanding, if flawed, novel that blends historical fiction and mystery.

It's true that the mystery itself is not particularly engaging and it's maybe too easy to predict the outcome. As a consequence, the twists and turns feel rather forced.

So the novel's greatest strength is not its plot but its rich and atmospheric setting, served by an elegant, engaging style, suffused with humour. Some scenes are masterfully written.

Address Unknown (Paperback, 2001, Washington Square Press) 3 stars

A rediscovered classic, originally published in 1938 and now an international bestseller.When it first appeared …

Short and effective

3 stars

This epistolary tale describes how ordinary, even liberal-minded people could be swept by nationalistic and fascist fervor in Nazi Germany. The novel is really short and we don't really have time to know the characters enough to believe in them. Still, it is a classic, an early warning cry about the pernicious changes happening in Germany at the time, well worth the read. Oh, and the ending is perfect.