History of Violence, author: Edouard Louis

 Audio book in English

History of Violence, author: Edouard Louis

 

V explicite, a portrait of a northern France small town violence.

How the mother had to suffer so much to get the small amt of income, how the immigrant workers from North Africa have to slave all their lives housed in small rooms, 4 at a time, the noise, the smell, the celibacy of all these men doing a low end physical labour, all told from a v calm, detailed voice.  Himself looking at himself in a detached way but not forgetting any details that could render the story with sharpness and understanding.  Misunderstandings, the missed communications, the homosexual acts from meeting to action to stealing objects to fear, to going to the police, the hospitals.  How the police made him repeat time and time again, changing bureaus, in order to establish a "file", which maybe useful as a "profile" maybe so they could take acct of what happened.  The racism, this racism is overtly pointed to Arabs, but aren't the low end little folks the same, same as poor immigrant workers?  They are of the same soup so to speak.  V well written. V courageous.  Reading this book is like taking me to the scene from all angles at once.  No film, no real person could actually have done that without the writers voice and eyes, from the inside out.  

Only writing a novel in such multiple angles could the 3D-ness of the events, in time, in history, in geophysical happenings could this be told.