The Seine Was Red
Paris, October 1961
Published on 3. September 2008
Book
Hardback
144 pages
978-0-253-35246-0 (ISBN)
Description
Leila Sebbar's novel recounts an event in French history that has been hidden for many years. Toward the end of the Algerian war, the FLN, an Algerian nationalist party, organized a demonstration in Paris to oppose a curfew imposed upon Algerians in France. About 30,000 Algerians gathered peacefully, but the protest was brutally suppressed by the Paris police. Between 50 and 200 Algerians were killed and their bodies were thrown into the Seine. This incident provides the background for a more intimate look into the history of violence between France and Algeria. Following three young protagonists-one French, one Algerian, and one French national of Algerian descent-Sebbar takes readers on a journey of discovery and comprehension. Mildred Mortimer's impressive translation conveys the power of Sebbar's words in English and allows English-speaking readers an opportunity to understand the complex relationship between past and present, metropole and colony, immigrant and citizen, that lies at the heart of this acclaimed novel.
Reviews / Votes
"This novel raises profound and timely questions about the nature of democracy, Muslim-Western relations, memory, history, and forgetting. Mildred Mortimer's masterful translation is a pleasure to read." -Anne Donadey, author of Recasting PostcolonialismMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Bloomington, IN
United States
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Weight
287 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-253-35246-0 (9780253352460)
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
Persons
Leila Sebbar is one of the French-speaking world's most important writers. Her novels include Sherazade, Marguerite, La jeune fille au balcon, and Soldats. She was born in Algeria and lives in Paris, France. Mildred Mortimer is Professor of French at the University of Colorado in Boulder. She has translated Leila Sebbar's Le Silence des Rives/Silence on the Shores and has written several works on North African literature, including Maghrebian Mosaic: A Literature in Transition and Journeys through the French African Novel. She lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Content
Contents<\> Acknowledgments Introduction: Unearthing Hidden History by Mildred Mortimer Nanterre. Amel. October 1996 Paris Flora and Mina Louis. Rue de La Sante Nanterre. Amel and Omer The Mother October 1961 The Owner of the Atlas Cafe Nanterre. Amel and Omer The Mother October 1961 Papon's Harki Flora Louis Defense. Amel and Omer The Mother October 1961 The Algerian Rescued from the Water Republique. Amel and Omer October 1961 The Owner of the Goutte d'Or Cafe. Barbes Flora Louis Flora Louis Place de la Concorde. Amel and Omer The Mother October 1961 The French Lover Louis Bonne Nouvelle. Amel and Omer October 30, 1961 The French Student Flora Saint-Michel. Amel and Omer The Mother October 17, 1961 The Bookseller of Rue Saint-Severin Louis Orly. Amel and Omer The Mother October 1961 The Cop at Clichy Louis Alexandria. Amel and Omer. Louis Notes Bibliography