Books
by Jean-Baptiste Andrea
|
A Hundred Million Years and a Day |
This French prize winning novel follows a palaeontologist and his companions as they search the high Alps for a dinosaur skeleton rumoured to be hidden by a glacier. The effort takes the palaeontologist to his limits, driving him into deeper introspection about his life and reinforcing his obsessive quest. Tensions develop as the dangers increase and winter approaches then things take a dangerous and dramatic turn, full of twists and surprises. The story keeps you gripped, partly by its spare but superb evocation of the icy world. Wouldn’t recommend reading this during a cold spell!
(Tony Pratt - bwl 108 Spring 2023) |
|
|
Devils and Saints |
An elderly virtuoso pianist plays only in stations and other public places, capturing the sublime in Beethoven sonatas while reviewing his life. Tragically orphaned, placed in a joyless Catholic orphanage in the French Pyrenees, he and other rebellious boys form a resistance group concocting a dangerous all or nothing plan on means of escape. A compelling narrative and vividly drawn characters – from a bigoted, cunning abbé to a young boy clutching a soft toy. It had me waiting impatiently to know what happened next.
(Tony Pratt - bwl 111 Winter 2024) |
|
|
