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Memory
Memory
Author: Philippe Grimbert, Polly McLean (Translator)
Twenty years after his mother and father jumped to their deaths from a balcony, Philippe Grimbert has written a gripping novel about the hidden memories that dominated their lives. — A colossal bestseller in Europe, Memory is the story of a family haunted by the secret of their past: an illicit love affair, a lost child, and a devastating ...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9781416560005
ISBN-10: 1416560009
Publication Date: 12/30/2008
Pages: 176
Rating:
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 5

3.5 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Memory on + 289 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
It's easy to finish this slim volume in one sitting. But resist that urge--Memory is best savored over several sessions. Previously published as Secret, this little book is a catharsis for a deep family secret.
Philippe Grimert, a Parisian psychoanalyst, blurs fiction and autobiography in a sparse, lyrical telling of growing up as the sickly only child of beautifully athletic parents in postwar France. On his fifteenth birthday he learns from an old family friend about his family's survival during the war, and that his imaginary stronger older brother really lived in occupied Vichy France. The horrors are not graphically depicted, but emotionally and symbolically palpable.
Brilliantly translated by Polly McLean, form fits function in this poignant novella about memory and guilt--personal and collective, blurred and never truly relived--best read with time to reflect.
reviewed Memory on + 412 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Powerful, beautifully written memoir of a French family mired in secrets in the post-Holocaust era.
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Yoni avatar reviewed Memory on + 327 more book reviews
This is the one of the saddest and most beautiful books I have ever read. I can't even think about it without a lump in my throat. As the daughter of a holocaust survivor, I read this as my own history. If you are a second generation survivor, please read this book. But read it alone in a quiet place. If not, by all means read this and understand the catharsis and beauty of this book.


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