Product Description

In 1941, Irene Nemirovsky sat down to write a book that would convey the magnitude of what she was living through, not in terms of battles and politicians, but by evoking the domestic lives and personal trials of the ordinary citizens of France. She did not live to see her ambition fulfilled, or to know that sixty-five years later, "Suite Francaise" would be published for the first time, and hailed as a masterpiece. Set during a year that begins with France's fall to the Nazis in June 1940 and ends with Germany turning its attention to Russia, "Suite Francaise" falls into two parts. The first is a brilliant depiction of a group of Parisians as they flee the Nazi invasion and make their way through the chaos of France; the second follows the inhabitants of a small rural community under occupation who find themselves thrown together in ways they never expected. Nemirovsky's brilliance as a writer lay in her portrayal of people, and this is a novel that teems with wonderful characters, each more vivid than the next. Haughty aristocrats, bourgeois bankers and snobbish aesthetes rub shoulders with uncouth workers and bolshy farmers. Women variously resist or succumb to the charms of German soldiers. However, amidst the mess of defeat, and all the hypocrisy and compromise, there is hope. True nobility and love exist, but often in surprising places. Irene Nemirovsky conceived of "Suite Francaise" as a four- or five-part novel. It was to be a symphony - her War and Peace. Although only two sections were finished before her tragic death, they form a book that is beautifully complete in itself, and awe-inspiring in its understanding of humanity.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #582 in Books
• Published on: 2006-09-30
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Woman & Home
"Be enthralled by Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky. A lost
masterpieces set in wartime France. Vivid and compelling"

Sunday Telegraph, rev'd by Katie Owen
"A powerful work, satirical yet humane, with a poignant awareness
of transient happiness"

Independent
`This miracle of a novel plucks tenderness from the heart of
tragedy.'

Customer Reviews

Compelling....though provoking
This book really surprised me. I read it after I'd read an article about the author in a newspaper, not really thinking it was my thing, but it was! I have no idea how much of the story (fact or fiction) was lost in translation to english, but what you get is interesting, insightful, full of emotion (no drivel though!!), undoubtedly bias and makes you think about the events of war in far more depth then you have probably ever done before. I would give the second part of the book 5/5, but found the first part not quite as engaging, nontheless it is an absolute must read and I'm sure its one of those books that I will pick up and find something new in again and again.

Disorganised and overrated!
I was very disappointed by this book. I found it very hard to get in to. There are far too many characters and scenarios and i found it hard to develop any empathy with the characters. Eventually gave up half way through Dolce and skipped to the letters at the back!

Nice cover, disappointing contents
I was very keen to read this book after hearing so many great reviews of it - have kept trying to progress with it but have finally admitted defeat. Just dull, with characters who made zero impact on me.