Madame Kampf, a Parisian nouveau riche woman, plans a lavish ball in the 1920s to enter high society, and she insists on inviting only those she considers distinguished. Her fourteen-year-old daughter Antoinette is excluded from the party and feels humiliated by her mother's behavior. In a cruel act of revenge, Antoinette is given the invitations to post, and she throws them in the Seine instead. Irène Némirovsky's novella shows social ambition, family tension and a teenager's anger in a few pages.
It suits readers who like short, sharp French fiction about class and family. It is a good introduction to the author, who wrote with ironic precision about the Parisian bourgeoisie. It offers plenty to talk over with a friend or a reading group once you reach the last page.
Thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Story Seeker. Which reader are you?
- ISBN
- 9782246151340
- Language
- FR
