The literary journalist Olivia de Lamberterie had moved us a lot with the story of her brother’s suicide, With all my sympathypublished in 2018. She returns to us this time with a novel that will surely resonate with women who feel sandwiched between children who grow up too quickly and an aging parent in failing health.
Posted yesterday at 6:00 p.m.
Anna, the narrator, literary agent, tries to keep her head above water, but inside, things are boiling. Pressed by time, by the expectations of her family, by a boss who demands publishing success, by society that throws women away after 50 and by the screens that have given way to real exchanges, Anna is devastated when she discovers that her husband, her rock, is cheating on her (we are in Paris, that said, and the husband is quickly forgiven). Fortunately, there are girlfriends, this clan of faithful women, who support each other with humor… and a little alcohol. And then family ties, whatever one may say, are stronger than anything and bring us back to basics.
Halfway between The Lionessesby Lucy Ellmann (for the interior monologue), and The new life of Kate Reddy (from the author of I don’t know how she doesAllison Pearson), How are people doing? has a very Parisian elegance and a nostalgic je-ne-sais-quoi reminiscent of Modiano’s novels. We close the book by asking ourselves: basically, it’s true, how do we do it?
How are people doing?
Olivia de Lamberterie
Stock
270 pages