A
Literary Saloon
&
Site of Review.

Trying to meet all your book preview and review needs.

Contents:

Main

the Best

the Rest

Review Index

Links

to e-mail us:

the complete review - fiction

Péplum

by
Amélie Nothomb

general information | review summaries | our review | links | about the author

- Return to top of the page -

Our Assessment:

B+ : an amusing consideration of the future and the past

See our review for fuller assessment.

  From the Reviews:

• "L'essentiel pour Amélie, comme pour son lecteur, est de se faire plaisir. Et l'on ne s'en prive pas, dans cet échange verbal sans doute trop long, mais drôle, enlevé, et même érudit, où les sophismes et les raisonnements les plus farfelus tournent au duel de cerveaux." - Olivier Le Naire, L'Express

Please note that these ratings solely represent the complete review's biased interpretation and subjective opinion of the actual reviews and do not claim to accurately reflect or represent the views of the reviewers. Similarly the illustrative quotes chosen here are merely those the complete review subjectively believes represent the tenor and judgment of the review as a whole. We acknowledge (and remind and warn you) that they may, in fact, be entirely unrepresentative of the actual reviews by any other measure.

- Return to top of the page -

The complete review's Review:

       Once again Nothomb offers a first person narrative. In the hospital for an operation the narrator wakes to a scene that seems to be a dream. A figure calling himself Celsius (and describing himself as "the most brilliant mind of my generation") explains to her that though her last memory is of May 8, 1995 it is now, in fact, May 27, 2580.
       The bulk of the book consists of the conversation between Celsius and the narrator, introducing her to a very different new world. It is not an accident that the narrator has been summoned here, as it were. Celsius has a grander plan in mind, in which she plays a role. His main concern is, of all things, ancient (or not so ancient) Pompeii: though the narrator recalls that it was destroyed in 79 A.D., Celsius informs her that no such thing happened.
       Celsius is attempting to reshape history (as a bizarre sort of cultural conservation), and the narrator, by recounting his tale back in 1995 is to assist him -- leading to this very book. The super-intelligent (but by no means wise) Celsius finds an interesting foil in the narrator, who can't believe the situation she is in and can't believe the world Celsius describes. Nothomb has her fun in imagining the future, and she is clever enough to pull it off well. The bumbling intellect naturally by no means comes off well, and Nothomb shines an interesting light on culture, art, and even politics -- all of which look mighty different in this new world. All the while the doubting narrator (and reader) also wonder how to ascertain the truth of Celsius' claims.
       Nothomb handles dialogue well, though here, where much of the book is conversation (with neither description nor commentary), it can seem a bit much. Nevertheless, the exchanges are frequently amusing and often clever. A fun, fast read, with some interesting ideas.

Please note and consider that this review is based on the original (French) version of the novel.

- Return to top of the page -

Links:

• Le Livre de Poche publicity page
• Voland publicity page

• KaFkaïens Magazine (French)
• Lire (French)

• The complete review's Amélie Nothomb page.
• Amélie Nothomb site
• Amélie Nothomb at the Institute of Germanic & Romance Studies

• Les aérostats
• Antichrista (Antéchrista)
• Attentat
• Barbe bleue
• The Book of Proper Names (Robert des noms propres)
• The Character of Rain (Métaphysique des tubes)
• Cosmétique de l'ennemi
• Le crime du comte Neville
• Fear and Trembling (Stupeur et tremblements)
• First Blood
• Human Rites (Les combustibles)
• Hygiene and the Assassin (Hygiène de l'assassin)
• Journal d'Hirondelle
• Life Form (Une forme de vie)
• The Life of Hunger (Biographie de la faim)
• Loving Sabotage (Le Sabotage amoureux)
• Mercure
• La nostalgie heureuse
• Pétronille
• Les prénoms épicènes
• The Stranger next Door (Les Catilinaires)
• Strike Your Heart (Frappe-toi le cœur)
• Sulphuric Acid (Acide sulfurique)
• Thirst
• Tokyo Fiancée (Ni d'Ève Ni d'Adam)
• Tuer le père
• Le voyage d'hiver

• Michel Zumkir's Amélie Nothomb de A à Z

• See Index of French literature at the complete review

- Return to top of the page -

About the Author:

       Belgian author Amélie Nothomb was born in Kobe, Japan, 13 August 1967.

- Return to top of the page -

©1999-2024 the complete review

Main | the New | the Best | the Rest | Review Index | Links