A Very Long Engagement, Sebastien Japrisot, Linda Coverdale (Translator). (Hardcover 0374283354) Book Reviews,

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A Very Long Engagement
Author: Sebastien Japrisot, Linda Coverdale (Translator)

Original title (French): Long dimanche de fian?ailles — January 1917: five French soldiers are marched to their own front lines where they will be tossed out into no man's land with their hands tied behind their backs and left for the Germans to shoot. They were, in civilian life, variously a pimp, a mechanic, a farmer, a carpenter, and a fisherm... more »an; now they are condemned because each had sought to leave the war by shooting himself in the hand. Taken to a godforsaken trench nicknamed Bingo Cr?puscule, the five are reluctantly sent out into the darkness; days later, five bodies are recovered and the families are notified, merely, that the men died in the line of duty.

August 1919: Mathilde Donnay receives a letter from a dying man. In it, the former soldier tells her that he met her beloved fianc?, the fisherman Manech, shortly before he died. Mathilde goes to meet Sergeant Daniel Esperanza at his hospital and there hears the story of the execution. She also receives a package with a photograph of the men and copies of their last letters. As Mathilde reads and rereads the letters and goes over Esperanza's tale, she begins to suspect that perhaps the story didn't end quite so neatly. And so begins her very long investigation into the mysterious circumstances surrounding the deaths of five condemned prisoners--one of whom, at least, might not really be dead.

In Mathilde Donnay, Sebastien Japrisot has created one of the most compelling and delightful heroines in modern fiction. Though confined to a wheelchair since childhood, "Mathilde has other lives, varied and quite beautiful ones." She paints, cares for her pets, enjoys a rich fantasy life, and is relentless in her search for the truth about Manech's death. But she is by no means the only vibrant personality leaping off Japrisot's pages. This author has a remarkable ability to draw even minor characters in three dimensions with economy and wit. Take Mathilde's mother, for instance, caught in mid-card game: "At bridge, manille, bezique, Mama is a dirty rotten swine. Not only is she an ace with the pasteboards, but she throws her opponents off their mettle by insulting or making fun of them." And even the characters we meet only through other people's memories--the condemned men--are so fully realized that you find yourself torn over which one you hope may have survived. As Mathilde comes ever closer to solving the mystery of what happened at Bingo Cr?puscule that January morning in 1917, Sebastien Japrisot proves himself a master storyteller and A Very Long Engagement a near perfect novel.

ISBN-13: 9780374283353
ISBN-10: 0374283354
Publication Date: 1993
Pages: 327
Rating:

0 stars, based on 0 rating

Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 1
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

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Amanda J. (blackhawkh109) reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 10/9/2010 + 15 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

This book is poetry in a novel form. From the very first sentence, I was hooked. A haunting mystery and a beautiful love story that shows love has no limits. Fantastic imagery, beautiful language, this book is amazing.

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Susan A. reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 12/27/2006 + 5 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

Loved this book, a real life mystery and love story about WWI

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Patricia K. reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 12/25/2009 + 2 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

I loved this book more than I can really say. It was very confusing at times, as I put the book down for a day or two and the characters' names got me disoriented. HOWEVER, it mattered little, if at all. I just kept reading and felt myself being absorbed into the book. I will definitely read it again to get an even better grasp of the storyline.

I've recommended it to so many people already, including my dad, who said the cover looked soap-opera-ish. The title and the cover art are misleading. The book is simply a mystery about a strong-minded woman determined to find her mate.

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Marcia B. reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 9/6/2006 + 17 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

Mathilde Donnay can't believe her fiance died in the treaches of WWI and begins a quest that will take years to unravel. She truly has a very long engagement. Great ending!

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Cheryl (boomerbooklover) - reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 9/10/2020 + 431 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

Romantic novel about a young Frenchwoman searching for answers about the fate of her fiance at the front in WWI.

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Laurenne S. (laurenne) reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 5/22/2006 + 7 more book reviews

Surprisingly, I didn't enjoy the book as much as the movie, but it's still a gorgeous novel.

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Paula D. (eddiandizosmom) reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 2/28/2006 + 134 more book reviews

I couldn't put it down!

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Steven G. (stevensmygardner) reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 11/14/2008

This was an excellent book!

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Mary Beth K. (Lizzie) reviewed A Very Long Engagement on 7/8/2007 + 25 more book reviews

The story of a young French woman who searches for her fiance missing from WWI. The book recounts what happened to the young man during the war years.Interesting puzzle that keeps your attention until the end.

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