Tag: human relations

Categories
Novels

The novel « Que notre joie demeure », by Kevin Lambert.

The novel "Que notre joie demeure" by Kevin Lambert.
The novel “Que notre joie demeure” by Kevin Lambert.

Kevin Lambert’s novel “Que notre joie demeure” caused a stir when it was published. While writing the book, the author allegedly consulted people to ensure that they would not be offended by the book’s content. Some saw this as a desire to be politically correct towards the various interest groups represented in the story.

Once the crisis has passed and the criticisms have been addressed, I must emphasize the excellence of the plot and the skill with which the writer transports us into the salons of the upper middle classes. The novel won the Prix Médicis 2023.

Through the open windows of a luxurious Montreal estate, we breeze into the world of the well-to-do and witness the attitudes, conversations and intrigues taking place throughout this social evening, where a renowned architect plays the starring role.

We take part in the life and story of this famous woman, who is planning the construction of a huge building in a less affluent part of Montreal. Where does she come from and how did she acquire her letters of nobility? How is a woman regarded in the architectural world, and what pitfalls does she still have to face to preserve her reputation in a male-dominated environment?

The story is a skilful presentation of the constraints faced by creators in Quebec, and especially in Montreal, when it comes to architecture. The new building will encroach on spaces long adopted by the less well-off. What role does information play, and how are pressure groups organizing to try and thwart the project in progress? What excesses can we expect?

The main character is going through a media storm at a time in her life when she’s approaching a well-deserved retirement. How does she see her contribution and how does she adjust, if at all?

The author maintains our interest from beginning to end, adopting a literary style that favors immersion. He also uses the feminine gender whenever possible.

Happy reading!

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Title: Let Our Joy Remain

Author: Kevin Lambert

Publisher: Héliotrope

© 2022

ISBN : 9 782 898 220 876

Categories
Graphic novels and comics

The graphic novel « Sept vies à vivre ».

The graphic novel "Sept vies à vivre".
The graphic novel “Sept vies à vivre”.

For a long time, I hesitated to buy this graphic novel, which was only available in one of the seven bookshops I regularly visit. In this age of flashy covers and attention-grabbing themes, I found myself faced with this quiet book about the seven lives of a complete stranger. What was I to do?

In the end, I decided to buy it and found it so interesting that I read it in one go. A very nice surprise, although I should have known that the quality would be there when I saw the name of the author, Charles Masson. I had previously read another very interesting graphic novel by this author. The book was entitled “Droit du sol” and dealt with the difficulties experienced by natives in dealing with colonialism.

A page from the graphic novel "Sept vies à vivre".
A page from the graphic novel “Sept vies à vivre”.

“Seven Lives to Live” is an intelligent and humane account of the life of an ordinary man named René. Forget computers and social networks. The reader finds René and his family several decades ago in the Bauges massif, where he spent his childhood and adolescence in the absence of comfort and luxury. The inhabitants toil to survive in this part of the country.

René lost seven siblings in infancy and is determined to live life to the full. He heads down to the valley to change his life. René’s seven lives are the seven great moments that change this man’s destiny. Like so many of us, he was shaken by events. In his case, it’s the Second World War, compulsory military training in France in 1946, chance encounters, and so on. How do you adapt and retain your humanity in the face of life’s surprises?

The script is solid and the graphics interesting. There’s no downtime, which is something to be said for a 225-page story. A great find to add to your library.

Click on the link for more graphic novels and comics in my blog.

Title: Sept vies à vivre

Author: Charles Masson

Editions: Delcourt/Mirages

© 2024

ISBN: 9 782 413 077 060

Categories
Graphic novels and comics

Environnement toxique (Ducks)

"Environnement toxique" by Kate Beaton
“Environnement toxique” by Kate Beaton

To pay off her student debts quickly, Kate Beaton, a young Nova Scotia resident, decided in 2005 to go and work in northern Alberta for oil companies exploiting the tar sands. At the time, this trip west was popular with Canadians looking for a lucrative job. So she left the paradisiacal landscapes of Cape Breton to plunge into the world of Syncrude and Shell in Fort McMurray.  

It was then that she realized what life was like on construction sites occupied mostly by men far from their families, many of whom had behavioral problems. Wherever she found herself, she suffered harassment in the form of derogatory remarks, insults, and eventually sexual assaults.

For these workers, loneliness and survival take on a completely different meaning than for the rest of the male employees in these isolated posts.

A multi-talented storyteller and cartoonist, Kate Beaton published a graphic novel in 2023 describing her experiences. She denounces “a harsh and complex system, which exploits natural resources as coldly as it does human beings”.

“Toxic Environment” is less about the destruction of habitat caused by tar sands mining than about the toxic working environment endured by the few women working on these sites.

Time Magazine, The Guardian and The New Yorker hailed this graphic novel, which also happened to be the winner of the Canada Reads 2023 contest.  It was published in English under the title “Ducks“, probably to remember all those ducks caught in the oil that made headlines at the time.

Click on the link for other graphic novels on my blog.

Happy reading!

Title: Environnement toxique (Ducks in English)

Author: Kate Beaton

Publisher: Casterman, for the French version

ISBN: 978-2-203-24223-4 (French version)

©2023

Categories
Novels

Von Westmount

Book cover of "Von Westmount" by Jules Clara
Book cover of “Von Westmount” by Jules Clara

With so much published in a year, a reader have to take risks here and there when comes the time to buy a book. At the Salon du livre de Québec 2023, I tried my luck with a couple of books I hadn’t heard of. The one that surprised me the most was a little novel by the name of Von Westmount.

The cover design was eye-catching. When I saw the plush house and the word Westmount, I knew that a detour to the west end of Montreal would be in order. For non-Quebecers, Westmount is known as a more affluent area, where the majority of residents use the English language as a means of communication, in a predominantly French-speaking Quebec.

During the year we follow Aline, the heroine of Jules Clara, she toils away at odd jobs, living her life as best she can, until chance allows her to try her luck with a new job.

She eventually finds herself in the English-speaking milieu of Montreal’s west end, and through her, we witness the lifestyle and conversations that take place in a private residence in the town of Westmount.  Will the heroine be able to adapt quickly to her new duties and make choices in keeping with her interests and values? How will her vision of Montreal evolve, literally and figuratively?

I loved this little book right to the end. It’s worth noting that some people had trouble understanding the conclusion, a conclusion that certainly seemed to me a logical choice to include in a story of this kind.

Some people also objected to the use of the English language in some sections of the novel.  As far as I’m concerned, I think the English language had its rightful place and played an important role in the unfolding of the story. But you need to know English well, not just stammer a few words.

In short, you’ll have a great time with Von Westmount if you enjoy a bilingual book and are interested in the special dynamics between Montreal’s west and east ends.

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Title: Von Westmount

Author: Jules Clara

Edition : La Mèche

© 2022

ISBN : 9 782 897 071 769

Categories
Human behavior

Religious discourse in Boston

Two worlds collide in Boston.
Two worlds collide in Boston.

In the foreground, two women are discussing and a man is paying full attention to his cell phone while, behind, the preacher and his devotees do what they can, through a religious discourse, to bring the citizens back in the right path: two worlds exist in parallel in this Boston park. If “the message is the medium”, as Marshall Mc Luhan once said, the communication method should possibly be reviewed, as the medium does not seem to work very well!

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Categories
Novels

A whole life.

Book "A whole life" by Robert Seethaler
Book “A whole life” by Robert Seethaler

While searching high and low in various bookstores in Quebec, I often make very interesting discoveries. I recently found a book by Robert Seethaler, originally published in German under the title of ,, Ein ganzes Leben ” and which in English is translated by “A whole life“.

It is a small book of only 145 pages, but the concise writing has the power to immediately propel the reader into the early 1900s, in the middle of the Austrian mountains. It was the period when the construction of the first cable cars began, a period that would change the whole dynamic of the society by gradually allowing more and more tourists to occupy a territory that was once sparsely inhabited.

The author tells the story of Andreas Egger, a simple and endearing man whose strength of character allows him to stand up to any ordeal. He is not distinguished by his intelligence, which is quite ordinary, but rather by his ability to survive and his desire to always move forward. He is a human being that we love and wish only good for.

Here is what the publisher said about Robert Seethaler: “A whole life, elected book of the year (2014) by bookstores across the Rhine, thus confirms the depth of his talent as a writer, capable of leading with great simplicity his reader as close as possible to his emotions”.

This is a very refreshing read for all!

Title: A Whole Life

Author: Robert Seethaler

Publisher: Farrar Straus & Giroux (2016)

© Charlotte Collins, translator (2015)

ISBN 9780374289867

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