Francis CarcoRecensioni

vivid passages of the faubourgs in Paris during the années folles

Really enjoyed this story of guilt, poverty, shame and a touch of love set in lowlife Paris. It has the atmosphere of Simenon and seems to preempt Camus and L'etranger. The relationship of Lampier and Leontine is at the heart of the story and a murder. They find themselves isolated by their secret which should separate them but in fact brings them together.

Great cover design - man in hat, tie, suit smoking a cigarette, gallows and decadence all around.

Infamy (La Lumiere Noire) by Francis Carco.
Opium, cocaine, incest, lesbians, etc.. Racier bits are subtly suggested. Wild stories with minimal and unpredictable plots, mainly psychological portraits . Highly recommended, long out of print. Also recommended: Perversity, Only a Woman, Depravity.

An interesting account of the life of Aristide Bruant and his influence on Montmartre and Paris. Some good black and white photographs.

Atmospheric cover design - man walking along the quayside, boat looming alongside, girl in red hiding/waiting behind a wall.

This book is a wonderful Gallimard production. OK the pages are browning but the smell of the pages as you turn them is oh so French.