That Mad Ache (La Chamade) by Françoise Sagan

This is my second Sagan (after Bonjour Tristesse) and once again, she did not disappoint. In That Mad Ache we are introduced to Lucile, a young woman who finds herself torn between two lives; one that involves an older man, Charles who offers her the world - but who she does not love, and another younger man, Antoine, whom she is crazy about but must sacrifice her posh lifestyle to be with.

Set in Paris in the 1960's, Lucile isn't a one-dimensional as she may seem, although she does exude characteristics of Scarlette O'Hara and Catherine with her detest for responsibility and refusal to grow up completely. She is only interested in the present, neither dwelling on the past nor planning for the future.

Was there anything left in this world that could still imbue childhood with some charm, after all the sad wailing of novelists, the obscure theorizings of psychoanalysts, and the fatuous outpourings of random souls encouraged to vent themselves on the theme, "When I was a child"? Only the nostalgia for those days of utter, absolute irresponsibility, now long gone. But for her (and this should would never have admitted to anyone), those days weren't gone at all. She still felt totally irresponsible.

Of course leading this kind of life never goes unpunished, and Lucille finds herself having to chose between an easy life or that which she loves most. The story is altogether heartbreaking and hopeful, written in a didactic tone, and explores the conflict of passion and understanding. It is less a love story than it is a novel that examines the choices we make and their greater ramifications.

But now she had a day and a half to make up her mind - and "prendre une decision" was among the most terrifying phrases in the entire French language to her.

If you are looking for an interesting, straightforward read, I'd recommend That Mad Ache. However if you haven't read Sagan yet, I would suggest you start with Bonjour Tristesse. To learn more about Sagan herself, check out my earlier post Françoise Sagan, My New Favorite.

Publisher: Basic Books, 2009 (English edition)

Shared Laughter

Reading now: La Chamade (That Mad Ache) by Françoise Sagan

Enough cannot be said of the benefits, the dangers, and the power of shared laughter. It is no less central to love than are affection, desire, and despair. 

Earlier this summer I read Bonjour Tristesse and feel in love with Sagan. La Chamade is shaping up to be right on par with her earlier work. 

Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan

This is a fantastic book. Read it immediately.

As I mentioned yesterday, Sagan wrote this book when she was 18, which I think contributed to the success of this story. We meet our protagonist, 17-year old Cecile, on summer vacation with her father just outside of Paris. Egotistical, endearing and very spoiled, Cecile fears "boredom and tranquility more than anything else". Jealous of her father's relationships with mature and rational women, Cecile plans to destroy them in an effort to keep her father all to herself. Sagan opens her novella with the lines:

"A strange melancholy pervades me to which I hesitate to give the grave and beautiful name sorrow. The idea of sorrow has always appealed to me, but now I am almost ashamed of it's complete egotism. I have known boredom, regret, and occasionally remorse, but never sorrow."

Of course the title, Bonjour Tristesse, is French for "Hello Sadness," so we know where the story is headed.

Sagan handles Cecile's transformation from a self-absorbed, disillusioned youth to a more mature and effected young girl realistically. We are introduced to a typical 17-year-old girl, one who admits, "I dare say I owed most of my pleasures of that period to money; the pleasure of driving fast in a high-powered car, of buying new records, books, flowers. Even now I am not ashamed of indulgent in these pleasures. In fact, I just take them for granted." We leave her after she has said "hello" to sadness. However, I'm not sure we are meant to understand Cecile has truly grown up. I think she is effected, but still enjoys her frivolous relationships and material things. Yes she has said Bonjour to sadness, but I don't believe she has gotten to know it very well. As Cecile puts it, "Unaccustomed to introspection, I was completely lost". All in all, the story moves along with ease and nothing really seems contrived.

I also loved the setting of the novel. Not only the beaches outside of Paris but the period charm of the 1950's. A time when it didn't matter that everyone smoked and drank too much whiskey. When socializing and tanning were summer activities of the utmost importance.

"I was nailed to the sand by all the strength of summer heat - my arms were like lead, my mouth dry."

Like The Elegance of the Hedgehog, this book is undeniably French. I recommend this to anyone who loves French literature or hated The Catcher and The Rye because it seemed contrived. If you have ever acted selfishly against your better judgement you will be able to relate to this novel. A true memento mori.

I'm looking forward to reading more Sagan and I think I'll start with her second novel, A Certain Smile.

Publisher: Harper Perennial Modern Classics

Year of First Edition: 1954

Françoise Sagan, My New Favorite

I started Bonjour Tristesse yesterday and love it. I've always been a sucker for stories that feature the spoiled, self-absorbed, manipulative young women and this story is no different. But besides that, the author Françoise Sagan is quite intriguing. Bonjour Tristesse was published in 1954 when she was 18 and it was immediately well received.

It sounds like Sagan herself was quite similar to her female protagonist in Bonjour Tristesse, Cecile. Sagan was born near Bordeaux to an upper-middle class family and was the youngest of three. She was described as "headstrong and fearless". She was spoiled as a child and didn't do well in school, and was eventually rejected by the Sorbonne. So at the age of 18 she began to write. In an interview with The Paris Review in August 1956 she said, "I simply started it (Bonjour Tristesse). I had a strong desire to write and some free time. I said to myself, This is the sort of enterprise very, very few girls my age devote themselves to; I'll never be able to finish it. I wasn't thinking about 'literature' and literary problems, but about myself and whether I had the necessary will power."

After the novel's success, Sagan then had money of her own - and a lot of it. In September 2004, upon Sagan's passing, The London Times wrote "Sagan was not shy in presenting to her public a version of the responsibility-free lifestyle endorsed in her work. She would leave her sports cars haphazardly in the road outside the doors of nightclubs, breakfast on Gauloises and coffee, and play to lurid rumours of her sex life. Her entourage came to be known as the pinnacle of youthful sophistication."

Labeled the enfant terrible, Sagan was a long-time smoker who was fined for using cocaine later in life. All in all, I find her fascinating.