Au Revoir, Tristesse: Lessons in Happiness from French Literature

Viv Groskop follows up an earlier book, The Anna Karenina Fix, about her love of Russian literature, with a look at some 19th and 20th century French classics. She discusses 12 writers (9 men and 3 women), focusing on a favourite work by each, starting with the short novel referenced in her title, Bonjour Tristesse by Francoise Sagan. Groskop writes that she chose these books because they represented her introduction to French literature.

I found this interesting and enjoyable, though I have only read three of the novels discussed here, plus other work(s) by three of the writers, and I don't really share the breezy optimism expressed in the title, that reading these books is a source of happiness. I didn't enjoy the only Balzac novel show more I've read (a set A level text), and there is no mention of Emile Zola or Francois Mauriac.

Still, this is a good read for anyone interested in reading French novels, whether in the original language or in translation, and might well inspire some follow up reading. show less

A chapter each for 12 famous French novels from an avowed English Francophile who spent her summers on an exchange program in France on her road to fluency in the language. She picks not necessarily the most well-known, but her favorites, the ones that marked her the most.
I really enjoyed the book. I would have appreciated this sort of modern, practical summary of book and author for everything I read in high school and college (French or English). Would read more.

Good review of a few well-known French novels.