Reading list

Must-Read New Releases | Winter 2020

by Miriam Bridenne | February 5, 2020

Each new literary season comes with its share of hot titles––those that seem to get all the praise and all the attention––, of exciting discovery, of disappointment as well. But there are also those that we all cherish: the new book of a beloved writer.
We savor them like a promising date, a dinner with a childhood friend, a (happy) family reunion… you name it!

This winter, some of your favorite writers are back with a new novel. Here’s what to expect!

Reading List

Miroir de nos peines by Pierre Lemaître
Our take on Pierre Lemaître’s latest novel? Engrossing! 
In Miroir de nos peines, the last volume of a trilogy that began with Au Revoir Là-Haut (Prix Goncourt 2013)  Pierre Lemaître brings the French Exodus back to life–a historical period framed by the beginning of WWII and The Nazi Occupation.
Louise, the little girl of Mme Belmont –whom we met as the landlord of Édouard Péricourt and Albert Maillard, the two anti heros of Au revoir là-haut– is now 30. She works as a housekeeper for an old respectable doctor. When he makes a sudden terrible advance towards her, the novel begins to unfurl in all its power. While the country sinks further and further into chaos, Lemaitre delights us with the passion, verve, and evocative power that have come to characterize his work.
Miroir de nos peines, a novel by Pierre Lemaître, Albin Michel
Otages by Nina Bouraoui
Our take on Nina Bouraoui‘s latest novel? Inspirational!  
At 53, Sylvie Meyer, a mother of two, is an exemplary employee: she is efficient and obedient to her boss, just like she was to her husband before he divorced her about a year ago. She agrees without protest to overtime work, as well as to closely monitor her colleagues.
But when her boss yells at and humiliates her, she rebels, and that’s when Otages really begins! Bouraoui delivers a convincing portrait of a woman’s vulnerability.
Powerful and enthralling!
Otages, a novel by Nina Bouraoui, JC Lattès 
Tu seras un homme, mon fils by Pierre Assouline

Our take on Pierre Assouline‘s latest novel? Enthralling!  

Dans Tu seras un homme, mon fils, Pierre Assouline brings Rudyard Kipling back to life and imagines a meeting between the brilliant author and Louis Lambert–a literature professor who dreams of translating the poem If.  Tu seras un homme, mon fils is the passionate tale of their fictive friendship, as well as a fascinating portrait of the multi-faceted literary genius who was riddled with contradictions–a rebel in love with order who had “a will of iron”, and was as admired as he was feared.

Tu seras un homme, mon fils, a novel by Pierre Assouline, Gallimard

La Vie que tu t'étais imaginée by Nelly Alard

Our take on Nelly Alard’s latest novel? Unexpected!  

Nelly Alard revisits her childhood passion for Elizabeth, the Empress of Austria. Throughout her detailed account, Alard follows in the footsteps of Sissi’s illegitimate child, who is now remembered as the Hollywood actress Elissa Landi,  creating a fascinating game of mirrors between  her own career as a failed and the secret daughter of “Sissi”.

La Vie que tu t’étais imaginée, a novel by Nelly Alard, Gallimard

Miriam Bridenne
After almost two decades of working in publishing, and a few round trips between Paris and New York, Miriam has decided to settle down at Albertine to do what she enjoys most: recommending books she loves. Somehow this also includes taking bizarre pictures for Albertine's social media outlets.
Other recommendations by Miriam Bridenne
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