Book – et mon luth constellé

 

 Book – et mon luth constellé

By: Ariane Schréder

Score: 8/10

Year: 2018

Publisher: Héloise d'Ormesson

ISBN 9782350874357 

Pages: 253

Language: French (no available translation)

From the back cover:

A charismatic young actress, Iris arrived one summer night in a village in the Pyrenees, sheltered by a Cathar castle. Her readings in the only local café had transformed the lives of the inhabitants and of little Louise whom she had taken under her wing. And yet, one day, without saying goodbye, Iris left, almost in secret. Leaving behind the heavy hearts and incomprehension of the little girl who had thought she was abandoned.

Fifteen years later, will Louise manage to unravel the mystery of this disappearance and reconnect the thread of their unfinished story? With poetic and sensual writing, studded with literary homages, Ariane Schréder leads an investigation where books are actors in their own right, white stones on the path to childhood.

Louise, 25, has just learned of the death of Iris, this friend she knew when she was only 10 years old. This friend who had said that she would leave one day, but neither 'soon' nor without having seen Louise to say goodbye - and with a promise of continued friendship through letters, certainly sporadic - because of her (Iris's ) epistolary aversion.

Louise returns to the village, takes refuge there and thinks about the content of a letter she would like to write to Stella, Iris's daughter, but what to tell her, when she does not know the reasons for Iris's sudden departure and still feels abandoned? her reflections are flashbacks to her youth, the partial memories she has of their meeting, friendship, and life changed in the village in the presence of this Iris - having read so many books at the local café as an exchange for her accommodation in an attic, above the bookstore of old George, this old bear steeped in grief.

These are the books that spark, as best they can, a series of cultural tributes, where Ariane Schréder explores childhood trauma and the magic of books. The problem is that there are, I think, perhaps too many quotations in the body of the chapters and which slow down the otherwise fluid, rapid reading - and in short, even very short sentences, which is not really my  cup of tea. In any case, not my favorite narrative genre, given my habit of Tolkien, Virginia Woolf, Henry James...

That said, Ariane Schréder's writing is still poetic, colorful, sometimes even exquisite, while being concise. She makes Louise, her heroine, grow, but also gives personality to the villagers, focusing on those closest to Louise and Iris's circle, and the further we move away, the fewer details are given, which is very well balanced.

The story lines converge, and no questions remain unanswered; I liked the ending and I even read the last 65 pages in one go, held in suspense, while the clues multiplied before arriving at the conclusion! (if you don't know, I don't read 65 pages in one go, I usually need breaks).

The author has managed to maintain a little suspense throughout the chapters, which are generally short (3-5 pages each, without title or numbering, just a little space on a page before continuing). Where many novels mislead the audience with flashbacks, Ariane Schréder has balanced the jumps in time very well and there is no mistake between present (Louise is 25) and past (she is 10). I really liked the originality of the main thread: Louise is looking for how to announce Iris's death and talk about her, as a person, to her daughter.

How can she heal from her felt abandonment while she is once again in her village? after all, a return to the source isn't always beneficial, but there, she learns more than one thing in her quest, and emerges enriched.

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Two TWs:

A doubt as to the cause of death of a character and a mention of the word suicide.

A single emetophobia trigger, with the V-word, when a character doesn't feel well, but we quickly understand the reason and the story doesn't dwell on it.