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Review
'it captures people's anxieties, joys and determination to maintain some normality in trying circumstances --Independent on Sunday
Sunday Telegraph, rev'd by Katie Owen
"A powerful work, satirical yet humane, with a poignant awareness
of transient happiness"
of transient happiness"
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is so fresh and interesting because it was written during the war, without the benefit of hindsight. The world didn't know about the death camps at that time - the author may have suspected, or even known, that a terrible fate awaited her by the time she hid the manuscript, but while she was actually writing, the big story was the German invasion and France's defeat. The culmination of the Nazi "final solution", and the subsequent process of holocaust memorialization, were still in the future at that point.
So what we get is a description of France in the early part of the war that is startling in its immediacy precisely because it is not coloured by a knowledge of what occurred during the rest of the war. Do any other contemporary accounts achieve this admittedly accidental and ultimately extraordinarily sad effect? Today's readers know what happened. The author didn't.
Suite Francaise is fresh, surprising and heart-rending - and extremely interesting from a historical documentary standpoint. The writer ain't no JP Sartre - it's pretty absurd to compare her with him - but it's worth a read for the insights it brings. The shortcomings in plotting and structure are pretty irrelevant given the work's other strengths.
So what we get is a description of France in the early part of the war that is startling in its immediacy precisely because it is not coloured by a knowledge of what occurred during the rest of the war. Do any other contemporary accounts achieve this admittedly accidental and ultimately extraordinarily sad effect? Today's readers know what happened. The author didn't.
Suite Francaise is fresh, surprising and heart-rending - and extremely interesting from a historical documentary standpoint. The writer ain't no JP Sartre - it's pretty absurd to compare her with him - but it's worth a read for the insights it brings. The shortcomings in plotting and structure are pretty irrelevant given the work's other strengths.
84 of 89 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I had read several reviews and deliberated before, finally, making my purchase. Simply to read this novel does not portray the entire experience. The characters in the book are convincingly real, but what I found surprising, was the way in which Irene depicted the occupying forces, not as brutes en masse, but as individuals, each capable of many acts of kindness and consideration.
Once read, it is vital to read the material in the appendices and to consider the times in which these people lived and their total helplessness, in a situation beyond their comprehension.
There are books which stay with you for a while, this one will stay with me forever!
Once read, it is vital to read the material in the appendices and to consider the times in which these people lived and their total helplessness, in a situation beyond their comprehension.
There are books which stay with you for a while, this one will stay with me forever!
78 of 83 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I discovered this book by chance and I am so glad I did. Irénes descriptions of occupied France and the effect it had on all classes of people are so vivid and factual. Without malice she takes the reader through each step of what must have been a terrifying journey out of Paris and to the countryside occupied by the German army at a time when trust and hope was in short supply.
Living in France now as I do, reading this has helped me to understand a little about the French attitude to being "French" and perhaps why they fight today to keep some key elements of their way of life.
Written at a time when we can only imagine the horror facing Iréné and her family the appendicies at the back of the book are as thought provoking as the two elements of her unfinished story.
The first appendix detailing her thoughts and plans for the novel she wouldn't be allowed to finish and the second a selection of correspondence predominately between her husband and friends as he tried to find out what had happened to Iréne when she was arrested and deported to Poland.
A brilliant book that I will re-read as I am sure I will pick out additional details each time I do so.
Living in France now as I do, reading this has helped me to understand a little about the French attitude to being "French" and perhaps why they fight today to keep some key elements of their way of life.
Written at a time when we can only imagine the horror facing Iréné and her family the appendicies at the back of the book are as thought provoking as the two elements of her unfinished story.
The first appendix detailing her thoughts and plans for the novel she wouldn't be allowed to finish and the second a selection of correspondence predominately between her husband and friends as he tried to find out what had happened to Iréne when she was arrested and deported to Poland.
A brilliant book that I will re-read as I am sure I will pick out additional details each time I do so.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Eye witness to an old war
Don't try and read 'Suite Francaise' in an evening, you would miss the nuances of this beautiful story. Read more
Published 2 days ago by W. D. Davies
A beautiful- tragically unfinished -work
EXQUISITE piece of writing that I would recommend to anyone wanting to 'feel' how the war was for French. civilians. Read more
Published 2 months ago by sally tarbox
A good read
There is no denying it is a remarkable book for its painful origin, loss and discovery. This is mainly what drew me to read it, but it is actually a good novel regardless of its... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Stephen Citynskyj
Suite Francaise
"Suite Francaise" is a stunning read. It is set at the beginning of the German occupation of France when the bewildered and panic stricken Parisians fled from the Nazi invasion,... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Carole Wharton
A remarkable suitcase.
Irene Némirovsky has written a remarkable account of two different aspects of life after the fall of France in 1940. Read more
Published 8 months ago by magpie
masterpiece - snatched from oblivion
Thanks to the foresight of her daughter who rescued the notebook on which the story was written the world is a richer place thanks to the thought provoking masterful piece of... Read more
Published 8 months ago by aragorn17
Compelling read
I read this as it was a recommendation from my daughter and she kindly passed this copy onto me once she had finished with it. Read more
Published 9 months ago by LindyLouMac
Somewhat old fashioned
I saw and heard a lot of positive reactions to this book. But for me the book was a bit of a let down. Read more
Published 12 months ago by F. Andries
Romantic
It is not the epic novel of WWII that I had expected but it is very well written, reads easily and is full of drama, romance and poetic descriptions.
Published 13 months ago by Diana Giménez Doucet
suite francaise
good book for my book club in good condition
unfortunately i forgot to double check if it was the english or french version as the title is the same in both and it was... Read more
unfortunately i forgot to double check if it was the english or french version as the title is the same in both and it was... Read more
Published 13 months ago by twlbailey
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