Lorelei / roman

by Genevoix-Maurice

218pages. poche. broché.

Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Charlie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Drawing inspiration from German rock, the narrowest part of the Rhine, the Nixe and Gérard de Nerval's poem, Maurice Genevoix introduces us to Julien, a student from the Loire Valley who embarks on a journey to Offenbach with Madame Roy, a wealthy widow whose daughters he adores. There, they meet Pacôme Roy, who is training to be a tanner.
It is in a romantic, mysterious Germany, but also in a changing urban area, that Julien will discover the many bewitching faces of the Lorelei, including that of a man who will become his frenemy.

The descriptions are numerous, but bland and static to the point of stifling at times. Furthermore, there is a strong, almost Flaubertian, sociological desire to present complex characters.
The beginning is soporific, recounting the love affairs of middle-class people who flirt with each other in the countryside. The real intrigue only emerges at the end of the first part. The stay in Germany is slightly more exciting than the beginning in France, but the first encounter with the Lorelei is nothing out of the ordinary. The mythical aspect is disregarded, making her seem almost banal.

The third part reinforces the initial impression of a sociological focus, which takes precedence over the somewhat fanciful mythical aspect evoked by the Lorelei.

Genevoix attempts to blend the marvellous with the modern, but the result is uneven. Simply placing the action in nature does not make it any more ethereal. While it is possible for a setting to seem conducive to supernatural, superhuman or romantic events, Genevoix does not exploit this enough or to good effect. On rare occasions, he comes across as spiritual or philosophical.

The writing is sorely lacking in subtlety and panders to the reader, but the romances are left open-ended with no real purpose. The only freedom lies in the open ending. Nonetheless, I found the author's manner of making his points unpleasant. Lorelei's background and initial intentions seemed interesting, but ultimately, the book is just window dressing.

[Cécile B. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Je n'ai probablement pas compris ce livre. Les intentions des personnages m'ont semblé incroyablement obscurs et indéchiffrables, leurs réactions et leurs discours incompréhensibles, leurs relations fades et superficielles dans l'ensemble. Je n'ai pas ressenti cet amour du pays voisin dont nombre de commentaires parlent ici, ni ces sublimes descriptions lyriques. Je me suis ennuyée ferme et je me suis sentie soulagée une fois la dernière page tournée (ce qui m'a pris un temps fou au regard de la petite taille du livre).

[Lizz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es un libro que cumple su función de entretener, pero por momentos se vuelve bastante tedioso de leer.

[Denis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genevoix used to be a very popular - yet serious and literary - writer in France, but his fame seems to have slowly faded. He’s rarely talked about today, it seems. That is a shame because his writing is gorgeous. Lorelei, an ode to the German countryside, the murmurs of its forests, and the beauty of its nature, as well as a nostalgic homage to the tender, moving friendships of youth, is a shining example of Genevoix’s talent at its best. Reconnecting with the original German sources of romanticism, the novel is the intimate portrait of a French teenager who travels to Germany and falls in love, in every sense of the way, and it is superbly evocative. You can almost hear the landscape whispers and see its shimmering loveliness. You also can sense what makes German culture so fascinating for a curious, sensitive French boy, but, as the narration unfolds, you can also feel what it contains that will, in troubled times, lead German people to more dubious and dangerous endeavors. Lorelei – a title based on one of the most enduring of all German traditions - is deceptively simple. It’s the tribute of a Frenchman to the charms and mysteries of his neighbor country. It’s also much more than that.

[Marie-aimée · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une histoire d'amour où se mêle les influences de la Lorelei, en Allemagne, entre esprit mythologique et contexte de l'avant guerre.

[Jaime Ibarra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Prosa disfrazada de poesia algo sosa y sentimentalista.