Love story , unmissable autobiography , chilling thriller , literary curiosity,… Which books to choose to occupy your curfew evenings or weekends by the fireside? The autumn selection for Parisiennes is here.
The book everyone's talking about
The good book: The last one by Fatima Daas - Black on white editions, 16 €
The pitch. French of Algerian origin, asthmatic, practicing Muslim, Fatima feels different from her sisters and friends. Often angry, rarely gentle with herself, the young woman understands, at the turn of an unexpected meeting, that she is attracted to girls. How to reconcile his fidelity to God with his love for women?
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. Because in addition to covering the Inrocks for her first novel, the young writer is already dubbed by Virginie Despentes herself who compares her to a “ Barthes and Mauriac for Clichy-sous-Bois ”. Excuse the little. With a pen as incisive and rhythmic as a rap, Fatima Daas , at the height of her 25 years, signs a first punch novel on identity and self-acceptance.
The politically incorrect narrative
The good book:Dirty bourge by Nicolas Rodier - Flammarion, € 17
The pitch . At 33 years old, Pierre was sentenced to four months in prison for having hit his partner. Flashback, almost thirty years earlier, in Brittany. Pierre, the eldest of six children from a Versailles family, is mistreated by his mother who demands that he finish his plate. Physical violence, verbal violence, the seed of aggression is sown in the child and will never leave him again.
Why Parisiennes are going to like it . With a raw and efficient pen, Nicolas Rodier makes a remarkable entry into the literary arena by daring to place his reader in the mind of the person who strikes the blows. Family secrecy, manipulation, psychological hold : so many elements gathered for a crisp turner page on the transmission of violence from generation to generation.
The already cult autobiography
The good book:What I don't want to know andThe cost of living by Deborah Levy - The basement, € 16.50
The pitch. Straddling memories and a feminist manifesto, these two volumes shed light on the life of the British author to question us about female identity . Through her childhood in South Africa , her divorce, her motherhood, Deborah Levy , 50, tells us about the lives of women, all governed by social and… patriarchal norms.
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. Do you already know the brilliance of this British writer? Impossible to miss this gem of feminist reflection which oscillates between humor and drama. That of a woman who threw herself headlong into the quest for the perfect home to meet the needs of all of herself.
The Sixties Saga
The good book: The demons by Simon Liberati - Stock, € 20.90
The pitch . 1966. Coming from wealthy Russian parents, Serge, Alexis and Taïné drag their youth from parties to bars, in search of ever more deliquescent limits. When Taïné loses his brother Serge in an accident, the life of the disfigured young woman turns into debauchery, at the same time as that of her brother Alexis. Donatien, this funny manipulative pervert who has always rubbed shoulders with his siblings, will he be able to save these lost souls?
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. Glamor, toxic, sulphurous and disturbing are the key words of this historical fresco which runs after the fate of terrible children. On the program, a trip from New York to Saint-Tropez via Bangkok and Rome , all in the era of Bardot , Warhol , Capote or Tennessee Williams . What else ?
The Belle Epoque gay love story
The good book: I only live for you by Emmanuelle De Boysson - Calmann Lévy, € 17.90
The pitch. Beginning of the 20th century. When she arrives in Paris on her husband's arm, Valentine meets a certain Natalie Barney , a woman of letters with a magnetic charm. At first impressed by the self-confidence of this rich American, Valentine is quickly disturbed by the reactions of her own body. The rest, you can already imagine: a devouring passion between literary salons and blindly in love.
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. Emmanuelle de Boysson takes us on a journey to a Paris populated by stars like Colette , Elisabeth de Gramont or Proust to talk to us about love, desire, emancipation and female freedom. A delightfully intelligent, erotic and erudite novel.
Netflix compatible
The good book: Maid by Stephanie Land - Globe, € 22
The pitch. The dream of American Stephanie Land from an early age? Become a writer. Except that, Stephanie gets pregnant with her abusive boyfriend. It is therefore alone, without resources, that she will take care of her daughter. To survive, the young woman rubs, sweeps and scrubs the houses of more or less friendly employers ... until she manages to follow distance learning courses in literary creation.
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. Barack Obama himself fell in love with this text which explores, through the daily life of a poor and single mother, the unfailing social divide in North America . The icing on the cake: the adaptation of this story will soon be available on Netflix !
The family fresco
The good book: Betty by Tiffany McDaniels - Gallmeister, € 26.40
The pitch. Sixth in a family of eight children, Betty Carpenter is inseparable from Landon, her dark-skinned Cherokee father. Cradled by the fantastic stories of this loving man, the little Indian girl grows up happily in a house nestled in the landscapes of Ohio . While innocence is suddenly torn from her, it is in the words that Betty, with an extraordinary strength of character, decides to take refuge to leave the world of childhood.
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. After seventeen years of writing this story inspired by the story of her own mother, the American author signs a family fresco of rare power (already crowned by the Prix Fnac 2020 ). Dazzling, complex and hypnotic, the characters in this novel will follow you for a long time.
The chilling thriller
The good book: Ida does not exist by Adeline Fleury - Bourin, 18 €
The pitch. Officially, the child does not exist. Undeclared at the civil registry, Ida, fifteen months old, is a phantom baby . Torn between the animal love she has for her daughter and the vertigo of being the mother of a being she did not want, the narrator sinks into murky waters. Overwhelmed by morbid thoughts, the mother damaged by life decides to go on a trip alone with her baby. There, she is sure, she will finally find the freedom to be who she wants to become.
Why Parisiennes are going to like it. Did you spend your summer devouring the Society on Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès ? You will shudder reading this chilling text. Inspired by a 2013 news item in Berck where the body of a baby was discovered on the beach by a fisherman, the novelist of Rien que des mots speaks to us without filter of mother's illness. Disturbing, raw, but poignant.
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