My French Whore

Written in a deceptively simple style, "My French Whore: a love story" is a profound story of love in the midst of war. Private Peachy enlisted to escape a stale life in Milwaukee. But a World War One battlefield predictably proves not to be the best place to start a new life. Shocked into an act of cowardice, he is immediately captured. Yet he surprises himself with daring born of desperation and some fortuitous inside information. He convinces his captors that he is a famous spy returning home. His fluent German and quick wit enable him to enter the privileged lifestyle of "Colonel Harry Stroller." Always alert for the chance to escape, he is haunted by shame and memories of battle. Then serendipity brings into this precarious show more balancing act a French prostitute and an American prisoner, and Peachy surprises himself again.

These are very human characters dealing with powerful themes: the realities of war, the shame of cowardice, revenge, unexpected courage, and of course, love. The perspective is personal but never maudlin. This is a quick read that leaves a lasting impression. show less

My French Whore was a used bookstore impulse buy. as much as i hate to admit it, book covers really do have an impact on whether i pick up books i don't know anything about and the cover of this one brought me in. as soon as i realized it was by Gene Wilder i had to buy it.

i was not disappointed in the least. this was a beautiful (albeit brief) story and the imagery was perfect. Wilder manages to create the perfect tone and pacing in a story that is only 192 pages in a small format book. that in itself is amazing. the characters, however brief they are with us, are instantly clear and fully realized.

my only complaint was that is too short. i want more. not because the story isn't complete, it certainly is, but... i could have read 1000 show more pages of Wilder's prose and probably still have wanted more. show less

I was really impressed with this short and sweet of novel of WWI ad hoc espionage and star-crossed love. It seemed to quietly come out from one of my favorite actors with little fanfare and I feel it a bit of a triumph; nice twists and I hope they make it into a movie as it would have a better plot than many I have seen.

Let’s face it. There is only one reason this book was published – the author’s name. Now, if you are saying that about Steinbeck, or Salinger, or Silverberg, or several others, then it makes sense. If you are doing it to document the completeness of a good author’s body of work, then you have a good reason for publication. Even if it is a new work by that author (albeit uneven) then there are reasons to move forward. If on the other hand, you say that about Krantz, or Collins, or Dr. Phil, then you are only continuing to foist the work of people-whose-only-ability-is-to-put-words-on-paper on a more-than-willing-to-accept-it world. (Let us pause – the world does accept this work. [Silent tears fall.] Let us move on.) Somewhat show more less heinous is the publishing of books because the author is famous. Now, I am not talking about books that are truly just the thoughts of the author (in particular, books by comedians – Seinfeld, Paula Poundstone, Bill Cosby, even one by Gene Wilder). Those are a niche served well by the practice. (Come to think of it, Jackie Collins fills a niche that is served well by the practice – I guess I just don’t believe that niche should exist; that people should be a little more discerning. [Sorry - honest, I’ll walk away from this pulpit.]) I am referring to famous people trying to actually be authors. Publishers need to be more discerning – looking for quality, rather than a name. This is not to say that famous people do not have the ability to write. For example, I have heard (though have not actually read the books) that Carrie Fisher and Fannie Flagg do a pretty good job. And, one would hope, this is the work of discerning publishers and editors working with what they have perceived to be talented authors to build a quality product.

Mr. Wilder needs a good editor, a good publisher, a good advisor, or a mixture of all three. Then this book would be made into something worth reading, or he would be advised to stick with his strengths (of which writing fiction is not one). It is not that there is inherently anything wrong with the writing. It is that there is nothing in it worth praise. The narrative moves along, the story develops, and we just don’t care. The end is telegraphed from afar, and it is an ending that just – well, no other way to put it – it just ends. The only plausible excuse is that this is his first foray into fiction. But I stand by the opening sentence of this paragraph because, if any of those had been evident, then this book would not be out amongst us. However, a name seems to make the unnecessary happen. The good news is that this brief piece (more novelette than novel) didn’t take up much of my time. The bad news is that it did, indeed, take some of my time.

(Final aside. “Why did you read this book in the first place?” My wife had heard interesting things about it. After reading it she indicated she would be interested in my take. I read through it and we compared notes. We agreed.) show less

Wilder’s story, set during WWI, has several very nice light touches, which I also associate with his movies - sweetness and grace, human dignity under difficult circumstances, and humor. It is rather simple, but it’s hard to imagine anyone hating it.

I so wanted this story to have a different ending even though I knew it wouldn't.

It's a small, simple story told with grace.

-- MY FRENCH WHORE by Gene Wilder is a bittersweet love story set in WWII. At end of novel Wilder credits Ernest Hemingway for spare writing style, but the twists & turns are pure Wilder. Despite the subject of protagonist's affections MY FRENCH WHORE isn't bawdy. It sparkles like the protagonist's favorite wine. Wilder is a genius. --