Diane Johnson est une romancière et essayiste américaine dont les romans satiriques mettent souvent en scène des héroïnes américaines vivant à l'étranger dans la France contemporaine. Son œuvre se caractérise par des observations perspicaces des conflits culturels et de l'adaptation. Johnson explore les ironies et les complexités de la vie loin de chez soi, souvent avec une touche légère et un esprit vif. Son écriture invite les lecteurs à contempler l'identité et le sentiment d'appartenance dans un monde globalisé.
The plot revolves around the enchanting city of Picturia, which faces a dire threat from Ig, who unleashes The HAZE, a force that spreads apathy and indifference among its citizens. As the vibrant spirit of the city begins to fade, Ig's sinister plan aims to destroy Picturia while its inhabitants remain oblivious to the looming danger. The story explores themes of awareness, community, and the battle against complacency in the face of adversity.
The two-time Pulitzer Prize- and three-time National Book Award-nominated author of the bestseller "Le Divorce" returns with a mesmerizing novel of double standards and double agents.
Fourteen short stories about Paris by Evan S. Connell, Alice Adams, Hortense Calisher, Mark Helprin, James Laughlin, Robert McAlmon, Ellen Gilchrist, Paul Theroux, Peter Taylor.
When Amy Hawkins, a successful dot-com executive from California, overhears elderly socialites criticizing her generation's worldly incompetence, she embarks on a journey to Europe in search of culture, her roots, and a worthy cause for her fortune. Her adventure begins at a luxurious hotel in the French Alps, renowned for skiing and cooking lessons, located in the town of Valméri. Shortly into her stay, an avalanche nearly engulfs her, while two fellow guests, esteemed English publisher Adrian Venn and his younger American wife, Kerry, are left comatose in a nearby hospital. The differing French and English laws regarding inheritance prompt Adrian's diverse children—both legitimate and illegitimate—to converge in Valméri, eager to secure their financial interests should he not survive. As an American, Amy's presence complicates the already tense social dynamics, and her well-meaning actions inadvertently trigger a chain of events that reveal deep-seated national differences, customs, and legalities. With the potential for romantic entanglements threatening fragile alliances, the situation quickly escalates into a complex web of intrigue and cultural clash.
La villa est magnifique, l'été brûlant, la Méditerranée toute proche. Cécile a dix-sept ans. Elle ne connaît de l'amour que des baisers, des rendez-vous, des lassitudes. Pas pour longtemps. Son père, veuf, est un adepte joyeux des liaisons passagères et sans importance. Ils s'amusent, ils n'ont besoin de personne, ils sont heureux. La visite d'une femme de coeur, intelligente et calme, vient troubler ce délicieux désordre. Comment écarter la menace ? Dans la pinède embrasée, un jeu cruel se prépare. C'était l'été 1954. On entendait pour la première fois la voix sèche et rapide d'un " charmant petit monstre " qui allait faire scandale. la deuxième moitié du XXe siècle commençait. Elle serait à l'image de cette adolescente déchirée entre le remords et le culte du plaisir.
Marriage has long been a focal point for great European novelists, with Tolstoy portraying it as a lonely affair and Flaubert as tragic. In contrast, American literature has often overlooked the theme, especially in the 20th century, which focused more on individualism. Diane Johnson's latest novel signals a revival of interest in marriage in the 21st century. Dividing her time between San Francisco and Paris, Johnson writes with the depth and insight reminiscent of Tolstoy, while infusing her work with distinctly American humor. Her characters grapple with comedic self-consciousness, and the plot explores the bizarre aspects of modern life.
The narrative centers on Tim Nolinger, an American journalist in Paris, and Anne-Sophie d'Argel, a French art dealer. Tim, who contributes to both conservative and liberal magazines, embodies the dispassionate American, while Anne-Sophie represents quintessential Frenchness. Their impending marriage unfolds against the backdrop of a medieval manuscript theft linked to a murder, leading them to the Crays, a couple facing marital decline, and Delia, a tourist with her own complications.
As the wedding date approaches, the characters navigate their chaotic lives, revealing their inner struggles and desires. Johnson's mastery of plot ensures that every character's journey is compelling and interconnected. With a keen understanding of the contemporary French milieu and the American expatriat
Isabel Walker, a young, not-so-innocent, American abroad, arrives in Paris to find that her sister's French husband ('the frog prince') has just walked out. While Isabel embarks on her own sentimental education -seduced by gourmet food, antiques, existentialism and an older man -her sister's marriage disintegrates into bitter Franco-American wrangles over money, titles and a mysterious painting. With a sharp tongue and an ironic eye for the foibles of the Parisian bourgeoisie, the French art world and American ex-patriots, Isabel is a collector of experience, even those she can't control.
This "brilliant, engaging, cleverly manipulated piece of fiction" ("San Francisco Chronicle"), written by the author of "Le Divorce", captures the moral dilemmas and life-and-death decisions that are the foundation of hospital life, portraying the continuous clashes of motive and sensibility that create the ongoing comedy of medical manners.
Contains interviews by critics and scholars with some of the foremost women writers, including Maya Angelou, A S Byatt, Luce Irigaray, Erica Jong, Jeanne Moreau, and Grace Paley.
