Paul Blick: born in France (but not Paris); son of a car dealer; provincial sociology student-cum-theoretical revolutionary; rioter of ’68; married soon thereafter; briefly employed (by his father-in-law); soon to discover adultery and other satisfactions of a desperate househusband as consort of a high-flying wife who conquers the world as CEO of a Jacuzzi-manufacturing company. This not-so-extraordinary Frenchman is delivered to the not-so-extraordinary awareness of having arrived in middle age more a product of his times, his country, and blind chance than a creature of his own free will. A fluke—wild commercial success as a photographer of trees—will give him, for a time, the belated illusion of self-fulfillment. But when this exalting respite passes (along with the unaccountable vogue for tree photography), Paul finds himself again a man more acted upon than acting, until the worst imaginable catastrophe forces him to see how feeble his powers to imagine the worst have heretofore been. And ever after there will be no avoiding the harder facts of life at the dawn of the twenty-first century. In this unforgettable French brother of Rabbit Angstrom and Frank Bascombe, Jean-Paul Dubois gives us a man whose life reflects the story—the mind and the heart—of a society coming belatedly, poignantly, and often hilariously to grips with the abiding pain and intermittent beauty of what living has become.

Vie Francaise: A novel

Literature & Fiction

DuBois, Jean-Paul

Contemporary

KNOPF

Meet Paul Blick: born in France (but not Paris); son of a car dealer; provincial sociology student-cum-theoretical revolutionary; briefly employed (by his father-in-law); married and soon to discover adultery and other satisfactions of a desperate househusband as consort of a high-flying wife who conquers the world as CEO of a Jacuzzi-manufacturing company. This not-so-extraordinary Frenchman is delivered to the not-so-extraordinary awareness of having arrived in middle age more a product of his times, his country, and blind chance than a creature of his own free will. Jean-Paul Dubois gives us a man whose life reflects the story – the mind and the heart – of a society coming belatedly, poignantly, and often hilariously to grips with the abiding pain and intermittent beauty of what living has become.

Vie Francaise

Vintage

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER AND WINNER OF THE PRIX GONCOURT FOR FICTION\nPaul Hansen is in prison. He’s been in this prison on the outskirts of Montreal for a couple of years now, sharing a cell with a murderous Hells Angel who often reminds Paul that he could kill him at any moment. What did Paul do to end up here? And why does he jeopardize his life and release by refusing to show remorse?\nBefore prison, there were his parents. There were his friends at the Excelsior, the luxury apartment complex where Paul worked as caretaker as well as restorer of souls and comforter of the afflicted. And there was his partner, Winona, an intrepid seaplane pilot, and their beloved dog, Nouk. Many of those closest to him are gone now, but Paul still talks to them; they appear in his dreams and as ghosts in his cell.\nFrom France in the sixties to the asbestos mines of Québec, from the sand dunes of the peninsula where the Baltic connects to the North Sea to the wild lakes and mountains of Canada, Jean-Paul Dubois’s extraordinary novel and winner of the Prix Goncourt Not Everybody Lives the Same Way, follows this man, Paul Hansen, as he reviews his life. A life of equilibrium, it has given Paul both tragedy and gifts––that is, until the moment when fate presents him with someone capable of breaking his balance. Not Everybody Lives the Same Way is a powerfully original and unusual novel. Masterfully translated by David Homel and brilliantly animated by Jean-Paul Dubois’s keen feeling for humanity and intense revolt against all forms of injustice, it asks the question: What does it takes to live a dignified life?

Not Everybody Lives the Same Way: A Novel

Literary

Harry N. Abrams

" Richly engaging . . . Skilfully translated by David Homel - Michael Arditti, Spectator"A touching tale of a beleaguered dreamer . . . Lightness balanced by glints of harsh realism, a combination captured perfectly in David Homel's translation" - Financial Times***WINNER OF THE PRIX GONCOURT***Paul Hansen is in prison. He's been in prison for a couple of years now, sharing a cell with a huge Hells Angel with a fear of mice and an intense love of Harley Davidsons, who often reminds Paul that he could kill him at any moment.But life wasn't always like this. Before prison, there were his parents: Danish pastor Johannes and free-spirited Anna, the proprietor of a controversial art house cinema in Toulouse. There were his friends in the Excelsior, the block of luxury flats where Paul worked officially as a caretaker, and unofficially as a restorer of souls. And above all, there was his partner, Winona, a daring seaplane pilot, and their beloved dog Nouk.Many of them are dead now: his parents, his friends, Winona and Nouk. Paul can still talk to them though; they appear in his dreams, as ghosts in his cell, breaking up the monotony and fear of his life behind bars. But Paul knows he cannot be released until he shows remorse for the crime that led to his imprisonment. And, even with his freedom at stake, for some things, true remorse is too high a price to pay. . . Translated from the French by David Homel

Not Everybody Lives the Same Way

MacLehose Press

La vie me fait peur. Trente-trois mille pieds, c''est l''altitude idéale pour réfléchir à sa vie. Dans l''avion qui l''emporte vers Miami, Paul Siegelman s''efforce de retrouver le fil conducteur et remet les chapitres dans l''ordre : la mort de sa mère, les acrobaties financières de son père, ses propres errances d''Ibiza à Panama City, ses relations tumultueuses avec les femmes. « Je suis tout petit. Je peux vivre dans un verre à dents », dira-t-il un jour. Et si c''était vrai?Avec ce livre limpide et mystérieux, Jean-Paul Dubois explore nos angoisses les plus familières et fait l''inventaire de quelques passions simples, comme autant de consolations. Dans les parages de Philip Roth et de John Updike, il est l''un des romanciers français les plus singuliers d''aujourd''hui.

La Vie me fait peur

SEUIL

Trente-trois mille pieds,- c''est l''altitude idéale pour réfléchir à sa vie. Dans l''avion qui l''emporte vers Miami, Paul Siegelman s''efforce de retrouver le fil conducteur et remet les chapitres dans l''ordre : la mort de sa mère, les acrobaties financières de son père, ses propres errances d''Ibiza à Panama City, ses relations tumultueuses avec les femmes. « Je suis tout petit. Je peux vivre dans un verre à dents », dira-t-il un jour. Et si c''était vrai ?

Genre Fiction

POINTS

S''il achète un revolver, rend visite à l''amant de sa femme, et finit par mordre sauvagement son dentiste, c''est que Samuel Polaris va mal. Très mal.A moins que les autres, les gens « normaux » - avec leurs plans de carrière, leurs adultères, leur incompétence arrogante - n''aient basculé dans une sorte de folie collective.Allez savoir.Parce qu''il n''a pas le choix, parce qu''il est amoureux de sa femme et qu''il refuse de se résigner au pire, Samuel Polaris décide de reconquérir sa dignité. Même s''il doit, pour cela, voler à son psychiatre la montre que portait Kennedy le jour où il a été assassiné.Nerveux, caustique, érotique, Kennedy et moi est le miroir où vient se refléter la « contre-vie » contemporaine.Prix littéraire France Télévision 1996

Kennedy et Moi

« Hier, j''ai acheté un revolver. Cela me ressemble bien peu. »Samuel Polaris va mal. Très mal. Il achète un revolver, menace l''amant de sa femme et mord sauvagement son dentiste. Mais comment être certain que ce ne sont pas les autres, les gens «normaux», qui ont basculé dans une sorte de folie collective? Samuel doit reconquérir sa dignité. Même si, pour cela, il doit voler à son psychiatre la montre que portait Kennedy le jour où il a été assassiné.« Trois mots et quelques suffisent désormais pour reconnaître la patte de notre Carver français. Drôle et noir, pessimiste et tendre, follement désespéré, c''est Dubois tout craché. » - Le Point

« Jean-Paul Dubois offre un roman d''une ampleur réjouissante. Cinquante ans de la vie d''un homme au cœur d''une société française qui commence avec Charles de Gaulle et s''achève avec Jacques Chirac. Tout le roman est un mélange réussi entre l''anecdote et l''histoire, entre Mai 68 et les dîners de famille, entre la mort de Franco et le premier baiser avec la langue. Jean-Paul Dubois parvient à raconter un demi-siècle de politique française par le chemin des écoliers, drôle et désenchanté. En passant du rire aux larmes, de la mort à la vie, il nous offre une saga sans artifices, un livre-bilan, un roman palpitant. » Christine Ferniot, LirePrix Femina 2004Prix du roman Fnac 2004

Une Vie Francaise (Points, No. 1378) (French Edition)

« Je suis veuf, athée, la folle s''est volatilisée et je convoite deux femmes dont l''une est une sainte. »Paul Miller s''est coupé du monde depuis le suicide de sa femme. Installé dans son nouvel appartement comme une bombe à retardement, il épie ses voisins, tourmente sexuellement les jeunes femmes, harcèle un curé libidineux, révère une strip-teaseuse et a totalement renié ses enfants. Une année va passer, de comédies en scandales, sans que nul ne comprenne où veut en venir Miller. Pas même son psychiatre, au bord de la crise de nerfs...« Les mots les plus simples pour les visions les plus quotidiennes deviennent des flèches qu''on reçoit pour un vrai bonheur de lecture. » - Le Monde

Une année sous silence

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by DuBois, Jean-Paul. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by DuBois, Jean-Paul

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by DuBois, Jean-Paul. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Vie Francaise: A novel

Vie Francaise

Not Everybody Lives the Same Way: A Novel

Not Everybody Lives the Same Way

La Vie me fait peur

La Vie me fait peur

Kennedy et Moi

Kennedy et Moi

Une Vie Francaise (Points, No. 1378) (French Edition)

Une année sous silence