Book Review: Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky

“But what is certain is that in five, ten or twenty years, this problem unique to our time, according to him, will no longer exist, it will be replaced by others…Yet this music, the sound of this rain on the windows, the great mournful creaking of the cedar tree in the garden outside, this moment, so tender, so strange in the middle of war, this will never change, not this, this is forever.”

Irène Némirovsky, Suite Française

Review:

Perhaps more interesting than this book itself is the story behind it. Before Irène Némirovsky’s had the chance to complete five planned parts of Suite Française, she was taken by the Nazis and sent to Auschwitz, where she died shortly after. Before her murder, she was able to complete the first two parts of the book by hand. Decades later, the manuscript was found by her daughter, who then transcribed and published the work.

The story follows various characters living in Paris during World War II. As the Nazis invade Paris, civilians pack up their families to flee. We follow families, a priest and the children in his care, wives who were left behind while their husbands went to fight in the war, a writer, a farmer, and others. Unlike the modern dual POV style, the book embraces the ensemble of voices without a singular plotline uniting them. Knowing this was written as the war was actively going on, it adds to the feeling of authenticity. 

I got the same feeling reading this as I get when I watch Casablanca (particularly the scene when they overpower the Nazis in the bar by singing La Marseillaise). Yes, it’s fictional, but knowing that the stories weren’t written in hindsight makes everything feel more haunting. Irène Némirovsky observed life in France during this time, and I would think the things she witnessed found their way into her characters, at least in essence. Knowing why the book was never completed packs a punch. If for nothing else but the author’s history alone, this is worth the read.

Likes & Dislikes:

What I liked:

• The history behind the book.
• A wide range of characters.

What I didn’t like:

• With the lack of an anchoring plot, it was difficult to follow.

Afterthoughts:

I won the thrifting lottery the day I found this book on the shelf with papers from The Museum of Jewish Heritage stuffed inside. One of the papers is a printed letter written by Irène Némirovsky’s daughter talking about the exhibition of her mother’s work.

Where to buy the book: