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“Les grandes marées” by Jacques Poulin is a wonderful introspective novel. It is tender and thoughtful, and I highly recommend it!
- Date finished: March 11th, 2017
- Pages: 224
- Format: Paperback
- Form: Play
- Language read in: French
- Series: Standalone
- Genre: Fiction | Canadian Literature | Academic
Buy “Les grandes marées” Amazon | Indigo | Book Depository
“Les grandes marées” follows the story of a translator nicknamed Teddy Bear. He lives on a deserted island with his work and his cat Matousalem. His boss, however, convinced of Teddy Bear’s solitude, sends a few people on the island. Amongst the few passengers, there is the beautiful Marie with her cat Moustache.
Despite the new companionship, the story greatly explores the theme of solitude.
This seriously had the potential of receiving five stars but I’ll settle for four.
I like, borderline love, stories with no plots but the ending to this story was so abrupt … not even anti-climatic … but leading to nowhere (literally).
I also liked that the characters are characterized by their traits.
Another aspect I liked was the references to modern day objects, comics, dictionaries, etc contrasted to an old fashioned world like the Island its set in. I wish was on the Île Madame Island but that’s besides the point.
Overall, this book was a still fast pace and an eccentric read.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
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