Quem Matou o Meu Pai

Édouard Louis speaks directly to his father in a short book that merges memoir and political argument. He recalls a father who once seemed cold and hard, a man from a poor town in northern France who worked in a factory, was disabled in a workplace accident, and was later forced into street-cleaning work to receive benefits. The son sees that the man's decline was not just fate but the result of decisions made by named French presidents and ministers. He ends up with a mix of anger and a late tenderness.

Readers interested in social class and politics, and in how public policy damages private lives, will find it direct and affecting. It takes about an hour to read.

Inward-looking; an easy read.

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