Fractured Soul
A Novel
Will be published approx. on 27. April 2023
Book
Hardback
224 pages
978-0-06-309366-9 (ISBN)
Description
Awarded the Prix des libraires by France's booksellers, a universal story about music and restoring one's faith in others amid the aftermath of tremendous loss.
Tokyo, 1938. An amateur quartet, led by the compassionate Yu, gathers to practice. Suddenly, their rehearsal is brutally interrupted by military police. In the ensuing skirmish, Yu's violin is smashed while his son, Rei, witnesses his father's arrest. He will never see him again. Salvaging his father's instrument, Rei escapes thanks to a mysterious lieutenant.
Paris, 2003. Raised in France, Rei-now Jacques-has dedicated his life to the broken violin's repair: studying music, becoming an apprentice, and, eventually, a luthier. However, despite his effort to rehabilitate the damage of years ago, he struggles to reconcile his past with the present.
Yet, when a world-class violinist, connected to the lieutenant that helped him as a boy, appears, Jacques' past is rekindled and he perseveres in a final bid to heal. Fractured Soul is a parable of what once was lost and what there stands to be gained-a story of immense beauty and ferocious courage.
Translated from the French by Alison Anderson
Tokyo, 1938. An amateur quartet, led by the compassionate Yu, gathers to practice. Suddenly, their rehearsal is brutally interrupted by military police. In the ensuing skirmish, Yu's violin is smashed while his son, Rei, witnesses his father's arrest. He will never see him again. Salvaging his father's instrument, Rei escapes thanks to a mysterious lieutenant.
Paris, 2003. Raised in France, Rei-now Jacques-has dedicated his life to the broken violin's repair: studying music, becoming an apprentice, and, eventually, a luthier. However, despite his effort to rehabilitate the damage of years ago, he struggles to reconcile his past with the present.
Yet, when a world-class violinist, connected to the lieutenant that helped him as a boy, appears, Jacques' past is rekindled and he perseveres in a final bid to heal. Fractured Soul is a parable of what once was lost and what there stands to be gained-a story of immense beauty and ferocious courage.
Translated from the French by Alison Anderson
Reviews / Votes
"In unassuming, almost crystalline language, Akira Mizubayashi blends French naturalism with the enchantment of Japanese stories. His book is a gift." - Jerome Garcin, L'ObsAn unapologetically sentimental book with a strong dose of pathos . . . [Fractured Soul is] a symphony of a novel-a tale about recovery and redemption for both one human individual and a society that gave way to nationalism and fear. - Asian Review of Books
"Written in a poetic, musical, and deeply moving style that delicately touches our hearts and souls." - Jean-Francois Cadet, RFI
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers Inc
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 215 mm
Width: 142 mm
Thickness: 26 mm
Weight
320 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-06-309366-9 (9780063093669)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Persons
ALISON ANDERSON, a native Californian, works as a literary translator in the Swiss Alps. Her many translations include the Europa edition of Muriel Barbery's The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Ingrid Betancourt's memoir, and the work of JMG De Clezio. She has also written two previous novels and is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Literary Translation Fellowship, as well as fellowships at the prestigious MacDowell Colony and the Hawthornden Retreat for Writers.
www.alison-anderson.com
www.alison-anderson.com