4 étoiles.
J'aime bien les romans policers de temps à temps, en particulier ceux de Chrystine Brouillet. Voici un récit rempli de personnages ayant des vies qui se tissent l'une à l'autre au fur et à mesure que l'histoire se développe. Maude Graham, la détective et protagoniste du livre, mène une enquête sur le pauvre Fabien Marchand, adolescent, mort avant son temps. Histoire de drogue et de jalousie. D'autre part, Vivien Joly (mon personnage préféré du roman) vient de déménager dans un nouveau quartier, un quartier qui était censé être tranquil. Malheureusement, Jesse Dubuc et Tony Nantel (un jeune couple) décident de déménager dans ce même quartier, juste à côté de chez Joly et apportent avec eux beaucoup de drame. Nantel que l'on croit être comptable riche est aussi impliqué dans la vente de drogues. Sa blonde ne le sait pas, elle est plus préoccupée à essayer de boucher sa solitude (Tony n'est souvent pas chez eux) en écoutant de la musique trop forte pour Vivien. Il ne faut pas que j'oublie de mentionner les autres voisins du quartier. En particulier, il y a le jeune Élian (qui aide Vivien avec son jardin), et Nicole (qui est beaucoup trop curieuse et indiscrète - et qui aime Vivien en vain puisqu'il est gay). Quelques autres morts suivent celle de Fabien, et après beaucoup d'interrogations, et beaucoup de suspects, Maude finit par découvrir les meurtriers et les raisons pour les crimes.
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Still Alice by Lisa Genova
5 stars.
I couldn't put this book down, to the point where I would fall asleep reading it into the wee hours of the night. While asleep, I even dreamt I myself experienced Alzheimer's, so much was I engrossed in this book and in Alice, the protagonist of the story, who develops early onset Alzheimer's. Genova does an excellent job of relaying what it would feel like to lose one's mind to this degenerative disease. Rich in writing, Genova draws us into the life of Alice, her husband John, and their 3 grown children Anna, Lydia & Tom. Written from Alice's perspective, we see how she and her family cope with this disease that erases the person Alice once was. One of the lines that broke my heart in the book was when Alice admits to her husband how she misses herself, to which he replies, "me too". Alice, a Havard professor, diagnosed with Alzheimer's, chooses to continue to teach until the end of her semester, aware that there would be some repercussions, but unaware of the extent of them. Indeed toward the end of her career, her once close colleagues have a hard time continuing their friendship with her and become distant. Sadly, society does not deal well with diseases affecting the intellect, we are much better at dealing with physical degenerative diseases such as cancer it seems. Alice finally resigns from her position. She understandably contemplates suicide as she continues to lose herself to this incurable disease robbing her of everything in which she once prided herself.
Genova underwent many interviews and much research in order to relay such an accurate portrait of an Alzheimer's victim.
I couldn't put this book down, to the point where I would fall asleep reading it into the wee hours of the night. While asleep, I even dreamt I myself experienced Alzheimer's, so much was I engrossed in this book and in Alice, the protagonist of the story, who develops early onset Alzheimer's. Genova does an excellent job of relaying what it would feel like to lose one's mind to this degenerative disease. Rich in writing, Genova draws us into the life of Alice, her husband John, and their 3 grown children Anna, Lydia & Tom. Written from Alice's perspective, we see how she and her family cope with this disease that erases the person Alice once was. One of the lines that broke my heart in the book was when Alice admits to her husband how she misses herself, to which he replies, "me too". Alice, a Havard professor, diagnosed with Alzheimer's, chooses to continue to teach until the end of her semester, aware that there would be some repercussions, but unaware of the extent of them. Indeed toward the end of her career, her once close colleagues have a hard time continuing their friendship with her and become distant. Sadly, society does not deal well with diseases affecting the intellect, we are much better at dealing with physical degenerative diseases such as cancer it seems. Alice finally resigns from her position. She understandably contemplates suicide as she continues to lose herself to this incurable disease robbing her of everything in which she once prided herself.
Genova underwent many interviews and much research in order to relay such an accurate portrait of an Alzheimer's victim.
The Time Traveler's Wife
5 stars.
I adored this fiction novel written by Audrey Niffenegger, and read it over the course of a few short days last summer. Anything to do with time and displacement and the merging of the past/present/future has piqued my interest since I was a child, so it was no surprise that I fell in love with this book.
A love that can transcend even time is beautiful... and for Clare, it was worth all the sorrow that came with waiting for Henry as he transitioned between different times of her life. She holds on to hope and love, "Don't you think it's better to be extremely happy for a short while, even if you lose it, than to be just okay for your whole life?” says she. I personally am still debating whether it's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved, but Clare seems to be content in loving and losing, at least during some parts of the story as she alleges, “We laugh and laugh, and nothing can ever be sad, no one can be lost, or dead, or far away: right now we are here, and nothing can mar our perfection, or steal the joy of this perfect moment.” For you see, Henry is diagnosed with Chrono-Displacement, and cannot control where he is within the sphere of time... he might be displaced at any moment and it could take minutes... or years... for him to find his way back to the "present", and ultimately back to Clare.
On one hand, this is a beautifully written heartbreaking love story, on the other hand, it is a commentary on determinism, and the idea that we cannot control our destiny. We have so little control in life, and Niffenegger seems to portray it poignantly in this narrative as nothing Clare nor Henry can do can prevent him from leaving the present moment. Clare acknowledges to Henry, "But sometimes you tell me something and I feel like the future is already there, you know? Like my future has happened in the past and I can't do anything about it." And Henry admits that though he goes back in time, and though all of his will wants to, he still cannot undo anything that's been done. For example, it torments Henry that no matter how many times time has sucked him back to the moment when he was still young and his mother passed away in a car accident, he cannot prevent the accident from happening. Conceding control of life's regrettable moment is no small task.
I adored this fiction novel written by Audrey Niffenegger, and read it over the course of a few short days last summer. Anything to do with time and displacement and the merging of the past/present/future has piqued my interest since I was a child, so it was no surprise that I fell in love with this book.
A love that can transcend even time is beautiful... and for Clare, it was worth all the sorrow that came with waiting for Henry as he transitioned between different times of her life. She holds on to hope and love, "Don't you think it's better to be extremely happy for a short while, even if you lose it, than to be just okay for your whole life?” says she. I personally am still debating whether it's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved, but Clare seems to be content in loving and losing, at least during some parts of the story as she alleges, “We laugh and laugh, and nothing can ever be sad, no one can be lost, or dead, or far away: right now we are here, and nothing can mar our perfection, or steal the joy of this perfect moment.” For you see, Henry is diagnosed with Chrono-Displacement, and cannot control where he is within the sphere of time... he might be displaced at any moment and it could take minutes... or years... for him to find his way back to the "present", and ultimately back to Clare.
On one hand, this is a beautifully written heartbreaking love story, on the other hand, it is a commentary on determinism, and the idea that we cannot control our destiny. We have so little control in life, and Niffenegger seems to portray it poignantly in this narrative as nothing Clare nor Henry can do can prevent him from leaving the present moment. Clare acknowledges to Henry, "But sometimes you tell me something and I feel like the future is already there, you know? Like my future has happened in the past and I can't do anything about it." And Henry admits that though he goes back in time, and though all of his will wants to, he still cannot undo anything that's been done. For example, it torments Henry that no matter how many times time has sucked him back to the moment when he was still young and his mother passed away in a car accident, he cannot prevent the accident from happening. Conceding control of life's regrettable moment is no small task.
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