La Comtesse des digues

by Marie Gevers, Vincent Vancoppenolle (Editor), Jacques Sojcher (Introduction)

French

201 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1931

About the author

Marie Gevers (30 December 1883 – 9 March 1975) was a Belgian novelist.

She was born in Edegem, near Antwerp. Educated by her mother, she had a special interest in literature. Very early in life, she composed bucolic poetry, encouraged by Verhaeren. Married in 1908 to Jan Frans Willems and mother of Paul Willems, she dedicated her entire life to her family. In fact, one of the distinctive traits of her poetry was the love of her origins and familial roots.

In 1917 her first anthology, Missenbourg, was published. Later, around 1930, she began to focus on writing in prose: Madame Orpha ou la sérénade de mai (1933), Guldentop (1934) and La ligne de vie (1937) continue this constant interest in the little people and life in Antwerp. Marie Gevers was the first woman to be elected to the "Académie Royale de Langue et de Littérature Françaises de Belgique" (Royal Academy of French Language and Literature in Belgium) in 1938. In 1960, she was awarded the grand quinquennial Prize for French Literature. She died on 9 March 1975.

(from Wikipedia)

Marie Gevers était une romancière flamande qui écrivait en français.

Marie Gevers dans la Wikipédia française


Marie Gevers was een Vlaamse schrijfster die vooral in het Frans publiceerde.

Marie Gevers in de Nederlandstalige Wikipedia

Marie Gevers bij "Schrijversgewijs"


Marie Gevers was a Flemish writer who wrote in French.

Marie Gevers in the English Wikipedia

Reviews

[Madame Lit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pour connaître mes impressions : https://madamelit.ca/2021/04/07/madam...

Au plaisir de les partager avec vous!

[Nurana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmm..

[Valérie Marcoux · Rating 3 out of 5]

La comtesse des digues me fait penser à un roman pastoral progressiste. Comme dans les romans pastoraux, on y vante la vie à la campagne, une vie près de la nature et traditionnelle : « Faites que je continue à aimer les choses d’ici […]. Que je continue à préférer l’Escaut au cinéma, et les promenades sur les digues à l’auto », supplie l’héroïne. Pourtant, l’œuvre est progressiste en mettant en scène une femme qui se retrouve dans une position d’autorité et qui a la possibilité de choisir son destin et qui en ébranle les coutumes… ou presque....https://lettrescetera.wordpress.com/2...

[Pascale · Rating 1 out of 5]

Regionalist writing at its weakest. The themes are the same as in all the other books by this author: the beauty of nature and the difficulty for women in rural Belgium of finding a husband who is both socially acceptable and attractive. With this material Marie Gevers did wonders in "Madame Orpha", but in this book the writing is much flatter and less evocative. Absent the poetry in the description of nature, the narrative moves along predictably towards its romantic conclusion. Gevers is a fine writer, but her range is very, very limited.