Celina

Reviews / Votes

'A quiet tale of a young servant in Victor Hugo's household; it pierced me to the heart.' - Marina Warner, TLS Books of the Year 2024
'Living in exile in the Channel Islands, the irrepressibly philandering author of Les Miserables
went through what is called his "Chambermaid Period". In this moving
short novel, Catherine Axelrad gives us the great man and his retinue,
his house and his mania for Gothic decor, the island and the threatening
sea, all through the eyes of a chambermaid-not a fantasy maid, but the
real girl from Alderney whose death in 1861 saddened the whole Hugolian
establishment. The poverty, ill-health and exploitation of working folk
and especially of the young girls who are brought to life here deepen
the understanding of what Hugo's great novel was really about. In this
lively translation by Philip Terry, Axelrad's portrait of a normal yet
unique Victorian household seen from "downstairs" is a true gem.' - David Bellos, author of The Novel of the Century. The Extraordinary Adventure of Les Miserables
'Seen through Celina's eyes, told with her curiosity, her wonder, her
sharp observations, what we witness unfolding here is not so much Victor
Hugo's life as that of the young narrator. We see the intelligence she
brings to bear, playing her few cards just so in a time which may be
the most patriarchal in our history: the nineteenth century. Catherine
Axelrad describes a quiet young woman who nevertheless hears everything,
sees everything, silently appraises her lovers, picks and chooses, and
escapes submission in her own way. It's a joyful read.' - Colombe Schneck, author of The Paris Trilogy
'Pitch-perfect, and so light yet so profound. All of Axelrad's books have
at their centre a silent, vulnerable young woman, but also one who is
tough and resilient, totally unsentimental but deeply responsive and
actually very intelligent. How such a person emerges out of such
apparent silence is the wonder of her work. Celina is as quiet and devastating a novel as I have read in a long time. Unforgettable.' - Gabriel Josipovici, author of 100 Days
"In this remarkable book Catherine Axelrad gives speech to a young woman born in poverty and almost lost to history. Celina is restored to life, emerging as lively, courageous, complex, witty, pragmatic, and joyful. There are moments of great tenderness and longing; despite her exploitation (for relations are often complicated, as Axelrad so subtly weaves), there is a real and delicate relation between her and her master, with whom she discovers the possibility of poetic language. Celina and Celina, woman and book, haunt me." - Sharon Kivland, author of Reading Nana: An Experimental Novel
'The extraordinary quality of Axelrad's writing is the silence that
envelops it. There is a featherweight lightness to it all that is a
supreme contrast to the heavy mournfulness one feels after reaching the
final page. Celina is not a submissive character, and life's blows,
including fears of impending death, glance off her, seemingly without
leaving a mark. Nor is she subversive (unlike Celestine in Octave
Mirbeau's The Diary of a Chambermaid, whose employer fetishises
her boots and ends up dead with one of the boots stuffed in his mouth).
She knows that her social standing limits her freedom and the options
open to her, and that it's not, as one character says, 'a crime to sleep
with a servant'. Nevertheless, within those limitations, she is able to
exert her individuality and choose her own lovers, including one
disastrous final relationship after she leaves Guernsey. At the end, I
could almost believe that Axelrad's Celina could have had some influence
on Hugo's creative life, perhaps as a prototype of Fantine, one of the
most attractive characters in Les Miserables, forced to become a prostitute before she, too, dies from tuberculosis.' -- Mark Bostridge, Spectator
'Catherine Axelrad's exquisite novella Celina, first published
in 1997 (now in a transporting English translation by Philip Terry) is a
plain, matter-of-fact and consequently very moving diary of a
chambermaid. It carries no salaciousness, but stands for itself [...]
Axelrad's dispassionate depiction of sullied innocence and forced
compromise is brutal and devastating.' - Catherine Taylor, Irish Times
'It would have been far too easy to convey Hugo as merely the predator,
with Celina his hapless victim. But Axelrad avoids that binary telling
in favour of something much more complex and compelling.(...) What makes
this dynamic all the more powerful and affecting, and Celina such a
moving literary character, is the particularity of her voice. Through
Terry's excellent translation, Axelrad's prose is light but never
delicate. Celina's life is undoubtedly tragic, but she herself is not;
she is self-aware, assertive and seldom pessimistic, at times even one
step ahead of her supposed betters.(...) But perhaps the most surprising
thing about Celina is how long it has taken to reach these shores.
Originally published in 1997, it was only translated into English in
July. Here's hoping this marks the start of some wider recognition for
Axelrad's oeuvre - and for the kind of forgotten voices she has brought
to life.' - David McAllister, Daily Telegraph
'Celina is beautifully written by Catherine Axelrad who captures
brilliantly the tone and voice of a young servant (...) Meticulously
researched and inspired by Victor Hugo's cryptic diary notes and letters
from his wife, the narrative is peppered with details illuminating
family life and the writing of Les Miserables.' - Georgia de Chamberet, BookBlast
'What an unsettling of the statue of father Hugo! Refreshing.' - Elisabeth Lequeret, La vie
'A tender, melancholic tale where Catherine Axelrad has managed to avoid
all pitfalls. Neither the story of the poor servant; nor that of the
great discontent; nor that of the lascivious old man handing out two
francs - scrupulously accounted for in his notebook - in return for
special favours. No - only the true and touching voice of young Celina
Henry, perfectly captured and wondrously restored, which the fine
phrases overheard at Hauteville House have, if nothing else, helped
liberate from those last sorry days.' - Mona Ozouf, L'Obs

'A Victor Hugo whom we do not know, for never had he been presented
against this backdrop, nor indeed as part of the banal unfolding of
daily life. A discovery, in fact, especially because he is not the
book's main character. This is well and truly the story of Celina Henry,
the maid, who discovers - and thereby enables us to discover - a man
ultimately like so many others, with his ordinary share of qualities and
flaws.' - Clement Borgal, La Republique du Centre