Black Rain (Simenon novel)
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Il pleut bergère... (1949, English: Black Rain) is a 'roman dur' by Georges Simenon.
The novel takes place in a small town in Normandy at the beginning of the 20th century (reference to the execution of the anarchist Francisco Ferrer, executed in October 1909).
The story, in the first person, is told from a boy's point of view a few years after the events. The narrator's reactions are still reminiscent of his childhood.
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Summary
Jerome has an acute memory for everything that concerns his early childhood. He remembers the "black rain" that enveloped the world in which he lived, and the arrival of Aunt Valerie, the event that would transform his life.
The two rooms above his parents' fabric store are just big enough for three. But Aunt Valerie, enormous, arrives with her hatred, her childish spite, her acid reflections and her preoccupations about her house; a house she has already disposed of it, which she regrets, because she would now like her property to go to her nephews, Jerome's parents. Fortunately, Jerome can still take refuge in his world with his toys, his little furniture and his animals; he can still look out of his window at his friend Albert, to whom he has never spoken, but to whom he feels close.
Albert's father is an anarchist wanted by the police for an assassination attempt. Jerome senses the distress of Albert and his grandmother; he guesses where his friend's father is hiding. But his mean aunt has undoubtedly also understood, and she is well capable of revealing everything to collect the ransom promised by the police. During whole days, they are going to spy on each other.
It rains all day, and in the evening the wind picks up on the day Albert's father is arrested. The police take the anarchist over the roofs, because the crowd gathered in the square rumbling with death threats. Among the rioters, Aunt Valerie... When she returns, announcing that "he would be beheaded anyway," Jérôme, terrified, understands that it was too much! Aunt Valerie would soon leave.
Much later, Jérôme learns that his aunt's departure was only due to her distaste for leek. His mother always put them in the soup; the aunt's scathing remarks made Jerome's father chase her away.
The characters
- Main character
- Jérôme Lecœur. 7 years old at the time of the events he recounts.
- Other characters
- Jérôme's parents
- Aunt Valerie
- Albert and his grandmother, Mrs Ramburges
- Gaston Ramburges, Albert's father (never appears in the novel as an acting character).
Éditions
- Édition originale : Gallimard, 1941
- Folio Policier n° 211, 2001 Template:ISBN
- Tout Simenon, tome 22, Omnibus, 2003 Template:ISBN
- Romans durs, tome 5, Omnibus, 2012 Template:ISBN
Source
- Maurice Piron, Michel Lemoine, L'Univers de Simenon, guide des romans et nouvelles (1931-1972) de Georges Simenon, Presses de la Cité, 1983, p. 102-103 Template:ISBN
Article connexe
Liste des œuvres de Georges Simenon
See also
