An absorbing bildungsroman that tells the story of three sisters amidst France's rapid transformation in the '70s

Three sisters were born into a modest Catholic family in Aix-en-Provence. Sabine, the eldest, dreams of an artist's life in Paris; Helene, the middle girl, grows up divided between the bourgeois environment of Neuilly-sur-Seine and the simple life led by her parents; Mariette, the youngest, learns the secrets and silences of a dazzling and crazy world.

In 1970, French society is changing. Women have emancipated themselves whilst men have lost their bearings, and the three sisters, each in their own way, find ways to live a life of their own-a strong life, far from the morality, education, and the religion of their childhood.

This family chronicle, which takes us from the May 1968 protests to the 1981 elections, is as much a tender and tragic stroll through the 20th century as it is the chronicle of an era, where consciousnesses are awakening to the upheaval of the world, and heralding the chaos to come.

About the Author
Veronique Olmi was born in 1962 in Nice and now lives in Paris. She is an acclaimed French dramatist and her twelve plays have won numerous awards. Olmi won the Prix Alain-Fournier emerging artist award for her 2001 novella Bord de Mer. It has since been translated into all major European languages. Alison Anderson spent many years in California; she now lives in a Swiss village and works as a literary translator. Her translations include The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery, and works by Nobel laureate J. M. G. Le Clezio. She has also written two previous novels and is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Literary Translation Fellowship.

Reviews
"A beautiful story of familial love." * ActuaLitte *
"A book filled with tenderness." * La Croix *
"[A] gem of a novel ... Heartstopping and heartbreaking." * The Independent on Beside the Sea *
"The brilliance of Veronique's writing is that you become intimately acquainted with the speaker's thoughts ... it unlocks you from the inside." * Lisa Dwan (Actress, star of Bloodlands and Top Boy) *
"Full of wonder." * The New York Times on Bakhita *



Book Information
ISBN 9781787704039
Author Veronique Olmi
Format Paperback
Page Count 496
Imprint Europa Editions (UK) Ltd
Publisher Europa Editions (UK) Ltd