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The Reinvention of Love

Quel livre lisez-vous? Quel film vous a dernierement epate? parlons-en.
Essaba
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Inscription :mars 06, 08 12:35 pm
The Reinvention of Love

Message par Essaba » sept. 24, 11 11:45 pm
























































Thursday, September 15, 2011







The">http://www.booksunderskin.com/2011/09/r ... Reinvention of Love






http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FgQGpIV1j8M/T ... f+love.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FgQGpIV1j8M/T ... f+love.jpg" border="0">
I feel like the
weather has gotten crisp a lot faster this year than it has in the last
few years, so I'm already fully out of my summer reading blitz and
firmly entrenched in fall reading. For me, that means books that I can
spend time with. I'm stubborn, so even though it's chilly out my windows
are still open, and since I get cold quickly I wrap myself up in a
blanket to read. Once I'm cocooned, I like to stay that way, so the book
I'm sitting with needs to suit the mood created by a cool breeze and a
mug of tea. There are lots of books that do the trick, and although I
admittedly read Helen Humphreys  in August, I think it would be one of them because there's nothing like tragedy to pick up on the nip in fall air.



 tells
a fictionalized version of the true story of the affair between Adèle
Hugo (Victor Hugo's wife) and the author and critic Charles
Sainte-Beuve. As many literary affairs are – and this one was certainly
literary, even in life – Charles and Adèle's is doomed. Charles is a
family friend. Years before the affair began, when Victor Hugo was still
new on Paris's literary scene, Charles wrote a favourable review of his
poetry and the two became friends. From then on, as Victor became
richer and more famous and Charles remained relatively poor, Victor
would send Charles his work to review. Charles became a regular guest in
the Hugo household and Victor named his second son after him. Then
Charles and Adèle began their affair, which was short-lived because in a
fit of guilt, Charles, assuming Victor already suspected, confessed the
whole thing. Of course, Victor had no idea, and despite his stated
desire to remain friends with Charles, that relationship fizzled
quickly.



At least,
that's how Humphreys tells it. I am not a scholar of either Charles
Sainte-Beuve or Victor Hugo, so I'm not entirely sure what is true and
what is fiction filling in gaps, but it certainly reads with a kind of
straight realism that gives the historical setting a familiar and vivid
feel. The novel is written mostly from Charles' perspective, although
there are sections written from Adèle's point of view, as well as later
ones that come from Adèle's youngest daughter, Dédé, as well.



Although
the affair is the catalyst for the novel, the story takes place over
several decades, most of which Adèle and Charles spend apart. Charles, a
writer, spends a lot of time writing about his love for Adèle – much to
the outrage of Victor's fans – and  is
really about what happens when an affair ends but the love continues.
It's actually an incredibly sad story, built as it is of memories and
glimpses, but the emotional truth of it is beautiful to read. The novel
takes a truly devastating turn, though, when Humphreys moves her
attention to Dédé, who was just a little child when Charles and Adèle
were having their affair.



Dédé, named for
her mother, is very affected by her older sister's sudden death (she
drowned) and when Victor moves the family to the Channel Island in a
self-imposed exile due to his disagreements with Napoleon III's
policies, Dédé is essentially removed from society. There are very few
other French-speaking people on the islands, and when she meets an
English soldier she becomes obsessed, continuously writing him letters
despite rarely receiving anything in reply. Dédé actually manages to
escape to Halifax, NS, where this soldier is stationed, and writes to
her parents to say they are happily married. I don't want to give away
the end of the book, but suffice to say this is not a happy ending.



I don't usually recommend these sorts of deeply sad novels, but ,
for all its sorrow, is still a beautiful story, and one I knew nothing
about before picking it up. Humphreys' evocation of 19th century Paris
is striking, and for all his bad luck, Charles relates a lot of
unintentionally funny moments and the novel is not all doom and gloom.
Rather, it's the kind of book that goes perfectly with chilly weather
and thick sweaters.  gives you something
to think about and, even if it doesn't work out, the love between
Charles and Adèle might just be enough to warm you up a little.



The Reinvention of Love

by Helen Humphries

First published in 2011 (cover image shown from HarperCollins edition)




Posted by
Angela Hickman


at
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"Quand les blancs sont venus en Afrique, nous avions la terre et ils avaient la Bible.Ils nous ont demandé de prier avec les yeux fermés; quand nous avons ouvert les yeux, les blanc avaient la terre et nous avions la Bible." Jomo Kenyatta



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