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Drie Sterke Vrouwen (2009)

by Marie NDiaye(Favorite Author)

3.17 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

9044516779 (ISBN13: 9789044516777)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

De Geus / Oxfam Novib

review 1: (Book club) This was a very interesting book. It was an example of the difference between a story and literature. Fine line. I reluctantly got about half way through the book and was just about to give up when I decided to read some reviews to see what I might be missing. They gave me the clue to what was going on in the second story. That got me more interested in finishing. And it was worth it. The last story was mind blowing. I finally got into the language of the writer. I also understood that the original story was in French. The translation limited the original meaning. This gave me lots to think about. Stories vs literature. English vs French. In the meantime, the story made a lot more sense. There are actually 3 stories. The first one is about a wom... morean who visits her father from whom she is alienated. Her visit echoes her feelings of helplessness in her own life. The second story is about a very paranoid man. It's hard to tell what's real. The third story is about a woman whose inner feelings about herself are at odds with her lot. It's a beautiful example of how we protect our 'sovereign selves'. I loved that she kept feeling that she was special. It reminded me of our own daily task. How do we feel good about ourselves when the world is treating us poorly? This is a beautiful book. The second story is disturbing, but human thought is complicated and paranoia is part of our life experience. How do we control it? Relationships are complicated including our relationship with ourselves. So much to think about. The language is beautiful, too. She does a great job of mixing up the tenses (translation issue) that adds poignancy to the story. Did it really happen? That adds another interesting angle to the book.
review 2: This is a tough one, and I think 3.5 stars is probably the more accurate rating. First disclaimer is that this is not a novel: it is three novellas. At the end of each novella, NDiaye includes a short (1-2 page) 'counterpoint' to the novella, told from another characters' perspective. Though there is a single loose thread running through the book (the protagonist of the first novella is a very minor character in the first novella is the distant cousin of a character in the second), the stories never tie together. They are distinct stories. I tend to prefer novels to novellas, and those reasons stayed true here. The first and third stories lasted just long enough for me to get entrenched in the characters and plot, but then ended abruptly. It was handled more deftly in the final story, but it still hurt to leave so much unanswered. The first story was my favorite, which is why I resented the abrupt ending so keenly. In part this may be my fault; when it ended, I did not realize I was going to be transitioned into an entirely different story, narrator, and set of characters. I do think the ending was abrupt, and left far too many open questions. With a short story, one expects to get only the briefest glimpse into the characters' lives. But novellas, by promising more, end up disappointing more as well. That being said, the reason that I found the conclusion to be frustrating was that I wanted more. NDiaye got me fully invested in her characters, their development, and their fates. She drew complex, imperfect, interesting characters, and carved for them a fascinating back story that I wish we could have explored more, from additional viewpoints.The transition to the second novella also was jarring because I liked that story by far the least. I thought the narrator's voice was less well developed, and instead of being engaged in his back story, I felt that important details were being left back for the purpose of storytelling. I think tone plays into this a great deal. For example, Ishiguro does this, but because he nails so thoroughly the life and position of the narrator, that feels organic to the narration instead of something constructed to propel the plot forward. NDiaye was successful in creating such an organic story and narration in her first novella, but it just did not work well in the second. The second novella was also bogged down by an unlikeable protagonist, which is not an insurmountable barrier, but one that this story did not quite vault.The third story, while not as good as the first, was very good and arguably more devastating. It tells the story of a girl who, banished from her in-laws' home after her husband died, was borne along with a tide of people hoping to emigrate to Europe. She was, against all odds--maybe even against the odds of her own outlook--a survivor. The consequences of her decisions are at once hopeful, triumphant, and tragic. It was difficult to know, at any given point in this story, which of these outcomes would win out. NDiaye is a beautiful, thoughtful, and effective writer. Though I thought the second novella was the weakest, they were all well written and she created vivid, unique characters--even those with whom, like Fanta, we actually spend very little time. I look forward to tackling one of her novels; I think it would allow me to experience her plots, writing, and characters in greater depth, and not leave me screaming at the poor protagonist of the second novella when, on its first page I realize that he isn't the narrator I wanted or expected. less

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