Two new novels showcase the breadth of contemporary French fiction
Newly translated works by Marie NDiaye and Mathias Énard are enjoyable reads
When a prospective client turns up at her office, Maître Susane has the stinging, dislocating feeling that she has met him before. She was then a ten-year-old child; he, a teenager. Her mother did the ironing at his family villa. They went to his bedroom; he played a Dire Straits album, dazzled her. “What exactly did that guy do?” her father asks years later. “Nothing, Papa! Don’t you understand?” she retorts. But was that true? And was this new client in search of a defence lawyer really the teenager from all those years ago?
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Breadth of ⇔French air”
Culture November 11th 2023
- The business of mining literary estates is booming
- A new Museum of Prohibited Art shows how censorship evolved
- Daphne Caruana Galizia’s son tries to make sense of her murder
- Two new novels showcase the breadth of contemporary French fiction
- Rodeo plays a central role in Native American culture
- Are influencers shrewd businesspeople or fame-hungry narcissists?
From the November 11th 2023 edition
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