Showing posts with label drames. Show all posts
Showing posts with label drames. Show all posts

My sister's keeper by Jodi Picoult

laraemilie



Author: Jodi Picoult
Publication date: 2009
Publisher: Hodder Paperbacks
Pages: 432
My opinion: 

* You don't love someone because they're perfect, you love them in spite of the fact that they're not.*


Sara Fitzgerald's daughter Kate is just two years old when she is diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia. Reeling with the helpless shock of it, Sara knows she will do anything -- whatever it takes - to save her child. Then the tests results come back time and again to show that no one in their family is a match for Kate. If they are to find a donor for the crucial bone marrow transplant she needs, there is only one option: creating another baby, specifically designed to save her sister. For Sara, it seems the ideal solution. Not only does Kate live, but she gets a beautiful new daughter, Anna, too. Until the moment Anna hands Sara the papers that will rock her whole world. Because, aged thirteen, Anna has decided that she doesn't want to help Kate live any more. She is suing her parents for the rights to her own body.


* If you have a sister and she dies, do you stop saying you have one? Or are you always a sister, even when the other half of the equation is gone? *

My sister’s keeper had been in my bookshelf for a while before I decided to read it. I was not convinced that I would like it – or rather, I was quite convinced that I would not like it – probably because of the plot. Anna is thirteen years old and her sister, Kate, suffers from a rare form of leukaemia. From the moment she was conceived, she was destined to help Kate survive. But Anna has had enough and decides to sue her parents for the right of her own body, although she knows that this decision will change their life forever.
When I read the summary, I thought Jodi Picoult’s novel was going to be one of these heart-rending stories where the author tries to make you cry from the beginning to the end; that it would be centred on Kate’s illness only to the detriment of the family and the characters; that the end would be predictable and contain no suspense. Luckily, I decided to start it anyway and I must say I was extremely surprise by how much I enjoyed it. The book was completely different from what I had imagined.
Of course, in such a story, illness has got a central part. However, I liked the was the author dealt with it because we could feel that she knew a lot about the topic although we did not have to read pages and pages of medical explanations. A few specific terms were used, but it was more to lead us into the setting than to really give information about leukaemia. So it is present along the whole story, but in the background.
We focus on Anna’s family, her own personality as well as her parents’, Kate’s and her brother’s and the relationships between these very realistic characters. Each short chapter is told by a different person, which enables us to have a different viewpoint on the events. It is an interesting narrative choice because it stops us from being on Anna’s side or against her. As the story unfolds and we share each of the characters’ experiences, we understand that such a situation is not as easy as it may seem: each person has got their reasons and sometimes there is perhaps no right or wrong.
The narrators are Anna, her parents and her brother Jesse, but we also have several chapters told by Campbell Alexander, Anna’s lawyer, and Julia Romano, the guardian ad litem appointed by the judge who has to decide what it better for the girl. Although I found it strange at the beginning, I then enjoyed having parts of the story told by characters that are not part of the family. I felt it brought reality to the story and diversion. In a way, it reminds us that no matter how hard the situation of a family is, other people around them also go on with their lives. One of the details that caught my attention was that Kate is not the narrator – except in one single chapter – despite the fact that she is the main actor in the story. I was a little disappointed at first, but after finishing it, I think it was a rather clever option.
As I said before, I appreciated the fact that the story was not tragic all the time. With such a theme, it was of course not going to be cheerful and merry, but several scenes are funny and will make us laugh. The timeline is not linear, as we have several flashbacks, which help us understand the character’s present actions.
Jodi Picoult also handles a theme which acquires more and more importance in our current life: genetic engineering. It is something subject to debate and controversy in the medical and political world nowadays and in is interesting to see how, in the story, it is also difficult to decide if it is right or wrong, good or bad. Although it does not occupy a central place in the story, several allusions are made to this matter.
The ending – which is probably what most readers will want to know before they start reading the novel – is not a happy one. Realistically, it cannot be a happy-ending. However, you will probably be taken aback by several twists and turns in the last pages, where the tension builds up until the last dramatic event occurs. I do not want to give away what happens, as it would spoil your reading, but this ending troubled me deeply. I still cannot decide if I like it or not but it clearly made me want to reread the novel with the new pieces of information I had.
My sister’s keeper is an amazing novel and I was not able to put it down until I had read it all. The writing style is nice and draws us into the story, mixing different viewpoints, present and flashbacks and tragic events with comic moments. It is a perfectly balanced story and my best read in the year so far. Let us hope the cinematographic adaptation will live up to the book’s success!



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The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

laraemilie


book cover
Author: Markus Zusak
Publication date: 2007
Publisher: Black Swan
Pages: 554
My opinion: 
* As Liesel would duscover, a good thief requires many things. Stealth. Nerve Speed. More important than any of those things, however, was one final requirement. Luck.*

Here is a small fact
You are going to die.
1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier.
Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when the bombs begin to fall.
Some important information
This novel is narrated by Death
it's a small story, about:
* a girl *
* an accordionist *
* some fanatical Germans *
* a Jewish fist fighter *
*and quite a lot of thievery *
Another thing you should know
Death will visit the book thief three times.

‘There’s a multitude of stories (a mere handful, as I have previously suggested) that I allow to distract me as I work, just as the colours do. I pick them up in the unluckiest, unluckiest places and I make sure to remember them as I go about my work. The Book Thief is one such story’
And a poignant one. It is Liesel’s story, which starts in 1939 in the German town of Molching. The nine-year-old girl is sent to live there with a foster family and starts her new life on Himmel Street with encounters, friends, football games, school… and thievery, especially book thievery. But war is raging in the country and the rest of the world, and nobody is safe.
Although it might first appear like a rather conventional plot, Liesel’s story is undoubtedly moving. Is it because of the theme, which is at the same time emotional and terrible? Is it because of the touch of humour that characterises the narrator’s voice? Is it because of the poetic style of the considerations on the power of words? Is it because of the agreeable and light writing? Is it because of the characters themselves and their ability to survive even in the most desperate situations? Is it because of the unusual graphic design of the book? It is probably the sum of all these little details that make The Book Thief such an extraordinary and unique novel.
Most readers’ attention will probably first be attracted by the visual aspect of the book. The cover seems to be a good mirror of what will be discovered inside, and so are the back cover and its short summary: something plain, elegant, sad, and yes, intriguing and unusual. There are hundreds of books about the Holocaust, but this one is not like any I have read before.
The story is composed of ten main parts, which are themselves divided into short chapters. Each of them includes comments and precisions given by the narrator, sometimes with lists, bullet points, definitions or even sketches and drawings. The changes in font and style give an extremely attractive appearance to the novel. On the back cover summary, we are already given a good insight of what will be told and why… as well as a useful piece of information about the narrator.
Those who have started the book without reading this extract might wonder who is telling them the story. Who is that strange person who addresses us in a casual way and who is obviously not a human being, although he lives among them? It is nobody else that Death. The idea of choosing such an unconventional narrator was a masterstroke, as it offers various advantages. Of course, he is unusual and for that reason also attractive. Moreover, it enables the author to vary the point of view. Although Liesel’s story and that of her friends, enemies and family is the most important one, the dramatic events that are taking place in the world can simply not be neglected.
Markus Zusak wrote about the Holocaust, but rather than focusing on the camps or on battle scenes, he describes the lives of several rather conventional characters in a small town. He does not try to make us hate Hitler’s supporters or commiserate with the Jews. He describes the events and the characters and the reader is left to make up his own opinion. We can easily imagine that hundreds of other families had the same daily routine as the inhabitants of Himmel Street. Some were on the Führer’s side, others helped Jews… what is sure is that war had an important impact for all of them, even the ones who did not want to be involved, even the elderly people and the children… like Liesel.
Casting Death as the narrator enables shifts between global events and the particular situation of Molching, as well as an insight into various people’s lives, which would not have been the case if Liesel was telling the story on her own. Also, the time of the story is not linear: we have many flashbacks and shifts in the future, which captivate the reader’s interest from the first word to the last. Although we are given clues about event that are to take place later on, the suspense is kept all the way and we are always waiting for one more twists and turns in the plot.
Markus Zusak’s writing style is light and easy to read. We have the feeling that we are addressed directly and thus really involved in the story. The presence of several German words or sentences – and their translation, added in a simple and natural way, for those who do not understand this language – give a local taste to the description and take us straight to Himmel Street in the 40s. You do not read the story: you live it.
Several passages are moving and some contain a touch of humour which is welcome or even indispensable when you explore such a serious theme. The author uses a wide range of extremely meaningful images and metaphors, which successfully add to the depth of the story. The colours are important for Death, as you will discover in the first pages. The power of words is analysed by Liesel in a beautiful way as the story unfolds and will probably leave more than one reader with pensive thoughts.
The characters are all detailed and well developed. Liesel is clearly the heroin, but each of the characters she encounters has got enough space for his own personality to evolve and for the reader to grow attached to him: Hans and Rosa Hubermann, Rudy, Ilsa Hermann, Frau Holzstapel, Max Vandernburg… In my opinion, The Book Thief illustrates in an accurate way what happens at war. In a single town, on a single street, you will find a mix of people: soldiers, fanatics, neutral people who do not want to take sides, hidden Jews… and so do unexpected and unbelievable relationships form and develop. In a hostile universe, people have no choice but cooperate and trust one another… or at least try to. This is what wonderful stories are often made of.
The Book Thief is no fairy tale – although you will find at least one among its pages – and it does not finish with a ‘happy end’. The last chapters are tragic but nonetheless magnificent. Despite my great sadness when I discovered what happened to Himmel Street and its inhabitants, I must admit that this ending perfectly matches the tone of the story. Most readers will probably find themselves with tears rolling down their cheeks as the inevitable happens… and after more than 500 pages, they will be wondering how he reached the end of the story without even noticing it.
A wonderful, poignant novel which is unique in its genre despite the popular theme it deals with. A heart-warming Holocaust fiction like you have never read before!

Thank you so much to Mum, who lent me this wonderful book. It is probably one of the best ones I have ever read!

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No et moi par Delphine de Vigan

laraemilie



couverture livre

Auteur: Delphine de Vigan
Date de publication: 2009
Editions: Le livre de poche
Pages: 256
Mon avis: 
* Je me suis retournée pour lui faire un petit signe de la main, elle est restée là, à me regarder partir, ça m’a fait de la peine parce qu’il suffisait de voir son regard, comme il était vide, pour savoir qu’elle n’avait personne pour l’attendre, pas de maison, pas d’ordinateur, et peut-être nulle part où aller.*

Adolescente surdouée, Lou Bertignac rêve d’amour, observe les gens, collectionne les mots, multiplie les expériences domestiques et les théories fantaisistes. Jusqu’au jour où elle rencontre No, une jeune fille à peine plus âgée qu’elle. No, ses vêtements sales, son visage fatigué, No dont la solitude et l’errance questionnent le monde. Pour la sauver, Lou se lance alors dans une expérience de grande envergure menée contre le destin.
Mais nul n’est à l’abri...

*Elle avait l’air si jeune. En même temps il m’avait semblé qu’elle connaissait vraiment la vie, ou plutôt qu’elle connaissait de la vie quelque chose qui faisait peur.* 
No et moi plonge le lecteur dans le monde de Lou Bertignac, une adolescente surdouée qui nous fait découvrir son monde: sa vie de famille - compliquée depuis un drame survenu plusieurs années auparavant - ses expériences et observations sur la vie, Lucas, l'école... Un jour, elle se voit obligée de faire un exposé devant sa classe, épreuve qu'elle redoute plus que tout. C'est ainsi qu'elle va rencontrer No, une fille à peine plus âgée qu'elle qui vit dans la rue. Lou décide alors de la sauver, à n'importe quel prix.
Cette histoire est extrêmement touchante et traite le sujet des sans-abris d'un point de vue inhabituel: celui d'adolescents. Les personnages principaux ont tous une quinzaine d'années - 13 ans seulement pour Lou - et se posent des questions sur la vie qui attendrissent le lecteur. En même temps, la réalité d'adolescent "normal" est confrontée à celle bien moins rose de No. Avec une telle histoire, on aurait pu s'attendre à un contraste exagéré (d'un côté une sans-abri et de l'autre côté une enfant gâtée), mais ce n'est pas le cas. Lou a elle aussi ses problèmes, et comme nous le verrons, être surdouée et se poser tant de question n'est pas toujours facile. De ce point de vue, Delphine de Vigan a trouvé le juste milieu, de manière que les personnages ne paraissent pas - trop - "clichés".
Le style d'écriture est simple, facile et agréable à lire. Il est parfaitement adapté aux adolescents mis en scène, car il ne faut pas oublier que même si elle est surdouée, Lou est encore très jeune. Ainsi, nous découvrons les problèmes habituels et les questions typiques qu'une adolescente de son âge peut avoir: l'école, les relations amoureuses, les amis. Elle a pourtant également d'autres problèmes, qui eux ne sont pas de son âge: tout d'abord la dépression de sa mère suite au drame qui s'est déroulé plusieurs années auparavant, et ensuite No. 
La relation entre les deux adolescentes est  bouleversante. D'un côté, Lou ne demande qu'à apporter son aide, mais de l'autre côté, No n'a pas l'habitude de faire confiance. D'à peine quelques mots impersonnels échangés au début, leur amitié se développera petit à petit, avec ses hauts et ses bas.
La fin du roman m'a surprise et, je dois l'avouer, un peu déçue. Je n'attendais rien d'utopique, mais de trop nombreuses questions subsistent à mon goût. C'est toutefois un livre qui vaut vraiment la peine d'être lu dès l'adolescence et qu'on ne lâche pas jusqu'à la fin - qui arrive d'ailleurs de manière assez inattendue...

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Expiation de Ian McEwan

laraemilie





Auteur:Ian McEwan
Titre original: Atonement (anglais)
Traducteur: Guillemette Belleteste
Date de publication: 2000 (traduction française: 2001)
Editions: Gallimard, collection Folio
Pages:488
Mon avis: 
* On incitait Briony à lire ses histoires dans la bibliothèque, et ses parents et sa soeur aînée étaient surpris d'entendre leur sage petite fille se donner en spectacle, faire de grands gestes de sa main libre, hausser les sourcils en interprétant les voix, lever les yeux de sa lecture l'espace de quelques secondes pour sonder les visages les uns après les autres, exigeant dans vergogne tout l'attention d'une famille ensorcelée par son récit.*

Sous la canicule qui frappe l'Angleterre en ce mois d'août 1935, la jeune Briony a trouvé sa vocation: elle sera romancière. Du haut de ses treize ans, elle voit dans le roman un moyen de déchiffrer le monde. Mais lorsqu'elle surprend sa grande soeur Cecilia avec Robbie, fils de domestique, sa réaction naïve aux désirs des adultes va provoquer une tragédie. Trois vies basculent et divergent, pour se recroiser cinq ans plus tard, dans le chaos de la guerre, entre la déroute de Dunkerque et les prémices du Blitz. Mais est-il encore temps d'expier un crime d'enfance?
Tout en s'interrogeant sur les pouvoirs et les limites de la fiction, Ian McEwan restitue les frémissements d'une conscience, la splendeur indifférente de la nature et les tourments d'une histoire aveugle aux individus.
Dans la grande demeure des Tallis, en ce bel été de 1935, la jeune Briony a décidé de devenir écrivain. Désormais la seule enfant de la famille dans ce lieu isolé, elle utilise son imagination débordante tant pour rêver que pour écrire… Et toujours dans ses fictions, le courage l’emporte sur la lâcheté, la vertu sur la tromperie et le bien sur le mal. Avec l’arrivée de ses cousins du Nord, ainsi que le retour de son frère Leon, elle voit l’opportunité de mettre son talent en avant. Adolescente à la frontière entre le monde des adultes et celui des enfants, Briony va pourtant provoquer un drame. Après avoir surpris sa sœur Cecilia avec Robbie, le fils de la femme de ménage, elle va changer leur vie à jamais.
Cinq ans plus tard, en pleine guerre mondiale, personne n’a oublié. Briony a grandi et décide de se repencher sur cette soirée où tout a basculé. Mais n’est-il pas trop tard pour revenir en arrière et arranger le passé ?
Expiation est un étonnant mélange. D’un crime d’enfance à la guerre, en passant par un drame familial, la déroute de Dunkerque, la vie londonienne en cette période troublée et une histoire d’amour brisée, Ian McEwan dépeint une image à la fois touchante, captivante et réaliste. Le lecteur est tout d’abord plongé dans l’univers des Tallis, famille de la bonne société. Dans un décor où la nature prend une importance particulière sont introduits les principaux personnages de l’intrigue : la jeune Briony, ses grands frères et sœurs, Leon et Cecilia, sa mère, Emily, ses cousins, Pierrot, Jackson et Lola, et quelques domestiques. Briony, âgée de treize ans, est immédiatement mise en avant. Nous découvrons sa vie, ses plus secrètes penses et sa grande ambition : devenir écrivain. Aussi incroyable que cela puisse paraître, c’est elle qui va – involontairement – provoquer la tragédie située au cœur du roman, par une suite d’événements que l’on pourrait qualifier de coïncidences fâcheuses.
La deuxième partie prend place cinq ans plus tard, au début de la guerre. Nous retrouvons alors les personnages principaux, dont le destin a été tracé par les événements de 1935. Robbie est alors projeté sur le devant de la scène, engagé dans l’armée anglaise. Nous traversons alors de nombreuses scènes de la déroute de Dunkerque. De la fuite des soldats aux bombardements des civils, de la détresse à l’espoir, tous les aspects sont traités dans de longues et précises descriptions. Ces dernières sont très réalistes et font bien ressentir au lecteur l’horreur dans laquelle Robbie et ses compagnons d’infortune sont plongés, pendant une période qui semble infinie. Bien qu’illustrant à merveille la lenteur avec laquelle l’armée en déroute se déplace certaines de ces scènes sont relativement longues à lire et n’apportent selon moi par réellement d’éléments significatifs, que ce soit du point de vue historique ou psychologique.
Du côté de Briony et de Cecilia, qui n’ont depuis le soir du drame plus aucune relation, nous assistons à un changement capital. Eloignées du cocon familial, chacune de son côté à décidé d’entreprendre des études d’infirmières. Avec le corps médical de l’armée, elles ont aussi à faire face à la guerre, mais de manière indirecte. Cette troisième partie, consacrée au travail médical, m’a énormément plus. Nous découvrons le quotidien des apprenties, préparées sans qu’elles ne le sachent réellement à traiter les blessés de guerre. Le travail se fait de plus en plus dur jusqu’à ce qu’elles soient projetées au milieu des horreurs de la guerre de l’armée en déroute. Les détails et anecdotes sont admirablement bien racontés, de sorte que nous avons une idée précise et complète de la situation d’un hôpital londonien juste avant le Blitz.
De nombreuses années sont ensuite passées sous silence jusqu’en 1999, date de l’épilogue, qui nous réserve bien des surprises. C’est seulement lors des dernières pages que le lecteur découvrira le fin mot de l’histoire. Contrairement au reste du roman, où les détails et descriptions prolifèrent, nous assistons à un dénouement rapide qui nous lasse nous interroger sur l’ensemble de la tragédie, de la première phrase au dernier mot. La longueur de cette dernière partie est parfaite : elle laisse place à l’interprétation et à la réflexion du lecteur tout en lui fournissant suffisamment de détails.
Ce changement de style d’écriture est dans aucun doute un des points forts de ce roman. Ian McEwan a choisi une héroïne qui se cherche et qui a pour ambition de devenir écrivain. A partir du moment où l’écriture est un thème sur lequel on attire l’attention du lecteur, il convient d’attacher une attention particulière à la forme du roman elle-même. Le début de l’intrigue se passe en 1935, dans une famille au statut social élevé. Le style utilisé – phrases longues complexes, description poétiques, vocabulaire recherché – reflète l’univers dans lequel les personnages évoluent. Nous sommes ainsi plongés dans le quotidien d’une famille cultivée de l’époque.
Plus tard, durant la guerre, mais plus particulièrement à l’hôpital où travaille Briony, les événements se précipitent et le rythme des phrases devient plus rapide, faisant en quelque sorte écho à ce qui se passe à l’extérieur. L’épilogue continue dans la même direction : le style est élégant, mais plus épuré qu’au cours des premières pages du roman, et plus direct aussi. Nous vivons alors un brusque retour à la réalité, le retour au monde d’une adolescente qui vivait auparavant principalement dans ses pensées et ses écrits.
L’écriture est, comme je l’ai déjà dit, un thème particulièrement important, qui est développé de manière très intéressante. Ian McEwan s’interroge sur ses pouvoirs et ses dangers, ainsi que sur ce que la fiction nous permet ou ne nous permet pas de faire. Omniprésente dans le monde d’une jeune adolescente solitaire, il devient sous-jacent, l’espace d’un instant, durant la guerre, avant de revenir sur le devant de la scène pour la fin du roman.
Expiation, c’est l’histoire d’une famille déchirée par un crime d’enfance où les protagonistes poursuivent leur destin au cours d’événements historiques majeurs. De la tragédie d’une seule soirée aux conséquences irréversibles de la guerre, le lecteur est tenu en haleine jusqu’aux dernières pages. Si vous aimez les romans psychologiques et dramatiques, avec pour cadre d’importants faits historiques, et que vous n’avez pas peur des phrases et descriptions parfois un peu longues, n’hésitez plus !


Un grand merci à Sophie de m'avoir prêté ce livre...
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War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

laraemilie



book cover
Author:Michael Morpurgo
Publication date: 2011
Publisher:Egmont
Pages: 288
My opinion: 
*Some in the village, only a very few now and fewer as each year goes by, remember Joey as he was. His story is written so that neither he nor those who knew him, nor the way they lived and died in, will be forgotten.*

'I saw the grey soldiers ahead of us raise their rifles and heard the death rattle of a machine gun...'
A powerful story if the truest of friendships in the worst of wars from the award-winning master storytelle Michael Morpurgo.
Love, friendship and courage... These three words describe perfectly War horse, the moving story of the horse Joey and his companion Albert through the Great War.
Michael Morpurgo takes the reader to the English countryside, where young colt Joey is sold to a farmer. The farmer's son Albert finds in love with the horse straightaway and as time goes by, their relationship evolves into a true friendship. Although Joey is not a farm horse he successfully learns how to pull a cart and plough to earn his keep and spends all the rest of his time with Albert.
However as war is declared, their destiny is about to change forever. Joey is sold to the army and has to go to the front while Albert, too young to join in as a soldier, stays on the farm. Before they part, he promises his horse that they will meet again.
The story goes on, describing the horror of a war where humans and animals are used like machines and do not understand what they are fighting for anymore. We discover the front line, the battles, the cavalry, the trenches and the artillery troops. Michael Morpurgo portrays extremely realistic scenes of the war which are ideal give children a basic knowledge of History. There is just the right level of violence to make them understand the horror and consequences of the war on people and animals.
We rapidly grow attached to that extraordinary brave horse. Joey, who is as you will have understood, the narrator and main character of the story, goes from farm horse to cavalry horse, war prisoner, ambulance horse and artillery horse. During his fight for survival he meets various people who will change his life and we discover little by little the lives of each one of them as well as the consequences the war had on them. Captain Nicholls, Emily and her grandfather, old Friedrich… so many people who fall for that heroic horse who brings a little light in their cold and dark daily life. But Joey will never forget his first and dearest friend Albert.
Michael Morpurgo skilfully mixes scenes of friendship and love with moments of fear and horror. This moving story is perfect for children who like animals and gives a good overview of the implications of World War I. Older reader might enjoy the adventure as well, especially if they want to know more about how horses were used during that war.


There is a film adaptation based on the novel: click here to see my review and comparison.


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