When an American mother-of-three finds herself overwhelmed in her new home in Switzerland, a visitor pops up offering to cure her son's asthma, her husband's growing indifference, and her own resentment of life. Is he the village nutter or - as he claims to be - the greatest mind of the eighteenth century? This talkative character wearing kneebreeches and wig is the last straw. Though she begs him to go home, he unpacks his mouldy trunk instead. Slowly V. becomes her warmest friend as they laugh and quarrel, and he teaches her the best lesson of all: how to live life to its fullest.
A Visit From Voltaire
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Product Description
From the Publisher
'A Visit From Voltaire' has been longlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2004.
About the Author
Born in Detroit, Dinah Lee Kung worked for twenty years as a reporter in Hong Kong for The Economist, BusinessWeek, International Herald Tribune, and The Washington Post. She now lives in Switzerland with her husband, a veteran of the International Red Cross, and their three children.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
62 of 62 people found the following review helpful
By Chris Eglund
Format:Paperback
I really, really loved this book. Voltaire comes back to life, not as a spook, but more an affectionate, avuncular nag in wig askew and ink-stained britches. Visible only to the author, his indomitable ego fills the pages with witticisms, verbal sparring and massive intellect. We learn about his life and times - but Kung has given him an entirely consistent, and insatiable appetite to continue his work after his death. With her help, he taps into the internet to lobby for human rights - and despite her efforts to curb his use of her credit card, he dabbles once again in the financial markets. The story is rich in character, dialogue and insight, fleshed out with her own confiding in the ghost about experiences she can't quite leave behind. He ages from a talented but self-centred salon lounge lizard to a frail humanitarian who has seen it all. He drinks gallons of coffee, takes snuff and wears fresh, clean clothes every day. She finds a way to make the best use of her new life in Switzerland and outgrow the vanities of her life before arriving in a small Swiss village.
This is a stimulating novel, rich and uncynical.
This is a stimulating novel, rich and uncynical.
71 of 72 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
In a world where most authors, other than the avowedly academic, appear to strive to fall within the neat categories of marketing departments, how refreshing it is to come across a book which resolutely, though unconsciously, defies such pidgeonholing.
Informed throughout by a wonderful sense of humour, "A Visit From Voltaire" is by turns a description, both serious and hilarious, of family life in a new and unfamiliar environment; an introduction to 18th Century cultural life; and, via a series of vignettes linking similar events in different times (the Author's and Voltaire's), a comment on political and religious corruption and intolerance.
Above all though, "A Visit From Voltaire" has, at its heart, the development from rocky beginnings of a wonderful friendship between the Author and Voltaire - Voltaire emerges not only as the champion of justice and tolerance that we are all aware of, but as a delightfully idiosyncratic and human character, fully capable of moving between his era and ours, where he finds his ideals still under attack and where his unflagging energy and honesty are still as necessary as ever. Whether adapting to the internet or revisiting old haunts in London, his zest for life is contagious. The development of the friendship between the Author and Voltaire is beautifully handled and I was as sad as the Author when they finally parted. How I wish he had stayed. I had so much I wanted to ask him.
As with all good books, I was inspired to do a number of things - learn more about the man and his century (a very helpful bibliography is provided); renew my contact with Amnesty International; Revisit Bernstein and take a look at my wardrobe.
All this in addition to a wonderful read. How could you resist?
45 of 46 people found the following review helpful
By Georgina
Format:Hardcover
I thought this was just about the most entertaining book I have read during the last year. Voltaire is a hilarious visitor - who annoys and entertains the author constantly during her battles to become adjusted to a totally different way of life with her family in a new country. It is completely orginal in its concept, funny, honest, soul searching and vivid - and erudite in a totally readable way. It's a book I am recommending to all my friends and anyone else who will listen!
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Author Dinah Lee Kung pulls off in this book a superb feat of imaginative writing. A transplanted New Yorker trying to settle down in a Swiss village with her husband and three children, the narrator discovers an unexpected visitor in her chalet: Voltaire. As she deals with violin lessons, ski trips, broken legs, and dinner parties, she brings Voltaire to life in her 21st century imagination, his moods and poutiness as well as his brilliance and wit. The parallels are uncanny, unexpected, always insightful.
Each time I put this book down, a line or two would keep popping into my head and making me smile or laugh. By the time you finish reading this entertaining book, you will have fallen in love not only with Voltaire but with Dinah Lee Kung.
Each time I put this book down, a line or two would keep popping into my head and making me smile or laugh. By the time you finish reading this entertaining book, you will have fallen in love not only with Voltaire but with Dinah Lee Kung.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Having lived in the Canton de Vaud for 20 years, driven up the road to St. Cergue at least 100 times (birthday parties, kiddie skiing and the Clinique Genolier), I loved this book and wish I had had the idea to write it myself. It helps if you "know the neighborhood," however. Otherwise, the nuances of trying to live in Switzerland with Voltaire might be missed. Very well observed -- and tactful -- view of the Swiss in Vaud. But, sometimes, conversations with Voltaire are too discursive to hold this reader's attention; would have been more effective, if somewhat distilled.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I really enjoyed the clever juxtiposition of Voltaire's retelling his formidable ups and down,( especially his downs,) to the author facing the frustrations of "exile" with family to this area of Switzerland, her Candide-like hapless befuddlement with her own searching travels and setbacks, and the way each chapter wove together three narrative threads. There was Voltaire's witty recap of his experiences, (sometimes you think he will never shut up) with her trying to make some sense of things, set against a burlesque backdrop of the local village. It isn't always funny, and sometimes a bit of a slow read, but I cried when she learns in the end to accept all the changes, to cultivate her garden. I think this book is quite original, and it really underscores the democracy of the written word. Anybody, no matter how humble, can invite the Greats into their life through books. Wonderful.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Wasn't a comedy at all
I found it hard to continue reading this book with any enthusiasm. Perhaps, it is because I also live in switzerland and know so well what she was describing. Read more
Published on 8 Jun 2005
5.0 out of 5 stars
Charming
This is a very good effort indeed. I am left feeling as if I have had a visit from Voltaire myself. Dinah lee Kung is obviously hopelessly in love with him - and why not? Read more
Published on 16 Jun 2004 by Jonathan Miller
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