LA FRÉQUENTATION DES À-PICS

Stories from the winner of Prix Lafayette. 2012

In one story, it's a little girl searching through a folder she had been forbidden to open. In another, it's a young student about to meet her boyfriend's mother for the first time. These stories depict the everyday struggles of women. The situations presented are hardly extraordinary but they are nonetheless decisive for each of the characters. A little girl, a mother, or a mere passer-by – all of them walk on a knife's edge. This is a book about moments in time – moments that define every woman's life at one point or another. It might be an exchange of looks through the window of a bus, an e-mail, or a poorly ironed hem. Anything can serve as a turning point after which nothing will ever be the same. Catherine Charrier approaches every situation with discretion and poignant precision. She writes in a subtle, poetic style as she takes us on a wonderful journey to the core of our being. The blend of intimate narratives illustrates what it really means to be a woman. Catherine Charrier was born in Alençon in the 1960s, at the tail-end of the baby boom. An alumna of the École du Louvre and a graduate of HEC, she is based in Paris where she works in advertising. She is committed to many issues relating to women's rights. Her first novel, L'ATTENTE, was published by Kero in 2012 and rewarded with the Prix Lafayette.