This is a wonderful novel narrated by a scientist about love, tolerance and humanity. A mysterious 'substance' appears to contain the answers to the problems of the world; its use results in a situation reminiscent of an end of days scenario that still looms large over the novel at its closure. This is a very thoughtful and sensitive read;. The translation into English captures the tone and balance of the original text in all but the smallest cultural details, unavoidably lessened through their transmittance into another set of linguistic cultual codes. ( )

Que se passerait-il si on pouvait choisir le sexe des bébés à naître? Maalouf explore cette possibilité, comme une catastrophe, dans des sociétés qui privilégient le garçon et qui élimineraient les filles, jusqu'à se retrouver avec un grand déficit de femmes et beaucoup de violence.

L'idée n'est pas mauvaise, mais Maalouf fait du Maalouf, ou bien c'est moi qui ai assez lu cet auteur et qui me lasse... ( )

Another of the three novels by the Lebanese-French master storyteller which I bought in an underground bookshop while on honeymoon with my dear wife Dawn in Agadir Maroc in 2001, this is also translated by Dorothy S. Blair, as was 'the Gardens of Light,' also published in the same series by Abacus, printed by Clays Ltd., St. Ives, England and translated from the original French publication by Editions Bernard Grasset. It has a price of 125.00 dirhams penciled inside on the first page upper right.

http://boekenwijs.blogspot.com/2007/1... ( )

http://www.livredepoche.com/Livre_De_... ( )