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Posts tagged with ‘France’

ON LEAVE by Daniel Anselme

May 29, 2014

REDISCOVERED FRENCH CLASSIC captures the spirit of 1950s Paris, alienation of soldiers in the Algerian War. A MINUS

Grade: A MINUS

ON LEAVE: A NOVEL
Faber and Faber
2014

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THE SUITORS, by Cécile David-Weill, translated by Linda Coverdale

March 3, 2013

GRACEFUL COMEDY OF manners set in the insular world of the French old-money elite; crisply translated fun!

Grade: SOLID B

THE SUITORS
Other Press
2013

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IGNORANCE, by Michèle Roberts

February 27, 2013

TWO FRENCH WOMEN from very different backgrounds do what they must to survive World War II. Haunting, incisive.

Grade: A MINUS

IGNORANCE: A NOVEL
Bloomsbury
2013

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THE GENERAL’S MISTRESS, by Jo Graham

November 12, 2012

DASHING HISTORICAL IS crammed a bit too full, with kinky sex and psychic powers atop court intrigue, battles.

Grade: B MINUS

THE GENERAL'S MISTRESS
Gallery Books
2012

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THE ADDRESS BOOK, by Sophie Calle

November 9, 2012

GORGEOUS LITTLE ART book is a collage of impressions–in photos and text–of the owner of a lost address book.

Grade: B PLUS

THE ADDRESS BOOK
Siglio
2012

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A SENSE OF DIRECTION, by Gideon Lewis-Kraus

November 2, 2012

A YOUNG US WRITER’S memoir of three pilgrimages (including the famed Camino de Santiago) has wit, lacks oomph.

Grade: B MINUS

A SENSE OF DIRECTION: PILGRIMAGE FOR THE RESTLESS AND THE HOPEFUL
Penguin
2012

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PHANTOMS ON THE BOOKSHELVES, by Jacques Bonnet

October 27, 2012

FRENCH WRITER AND BOOK collector Jacques Bonnet shares slyly insightful thoughts on his 40,000-volume library.

Grade: SOLID B

PHANTOMS ON THE BOOKSHELVES
The Overlook Press
2012

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THE RUINS OF LACE, by Iris Anthony

October 18, 2012

UNUSUAL HISTORICAL DRAMA revolves around the smuggling trade that trafficked Flemish lace into 1630s France.

Grade: B MINUS

THE RUINS OF LACE
Sourcebooks
2012

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THE SECOND EMPRESS, by Michelle Moran

October 7, 2012

JUICY COURT INTRIGUE, this time revolving around Napoleon’s second wife, Maria Luisa of Austria. Delightful!

Grade: SOLID B

THE SECOND EMPRESS: A NOVEL OF NAPOLEON'S COURT
Crown
2012

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THE QUEEN’S LOVER, by Francine du Plessix Gray

September 14, 2012

MARIE ANTOINETTE’S LOVER, Swedish diplomat Axel von Fersen, is brought to life in a complex fictional memoir.

Grade: SOLID B

THE QUEEN'S LOVER
Penguin
2012

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