It’s the story of a very tight-knit family, where everyone’s roles are very well defined: the father, Eddie, a successful businessman, ensures the security and comfort of his little tribe.
His wife Nora, a jewelry designer, invests body and soul in motherhood. Their daughter, Leni, whom they almost lost at birth, is a gifted gymnast. She invests herself in the discipline of “tumbling”, a way for her to escape, and to control her environment. She experiences with intensity the seconds during which her body is suspended in the air.
Behind the image of the perfect little family, the situation is slowly rotting. Eddie will go bankrupt but won’t dare admit it.
Lies, misplaced pride, communication problems… This story could have been different, if only…
Eddie sinks deeper into his lies, and at times we think of The opponent by Emmanuel Carrère.
Little by little, it is coach from Leni, Jonah, who will take the father’s place and become the protector of the mother and daughter. Not without danger, because he too carries a painful past that he never talks about.
What gives Valérie Tong Cuong’s novel its strength and originality is the fifth character in the story: nature, which prowls and threatens. As the family unravels, nature is unleashed. This disordered nature troubles the teenager, symbol of an eco-anxious generation. When a tornado literally destroys the house, the entire family dynamic will be changed forever and everyone will show their true colors. For better and for worse.
Aerobatics
Gallimard
240 pages