2015

[Kai Frederik Lorentzen]

Sometimes it's very sad when life and literature do meet.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-07/shots-at-charlie-hebdo-weekly-in-paris-leave-six-injured.html

 > Paris was put on the highest terrorist alert after France's worst 
attack in decades killed at least 12 people in shootings at the office 
of satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo in the city’s east.

Four more victims are in critical condition and an additional 20 were 
injured, police said.

“France is in a state of shock after this terrorist attack,” French 
President Francois Hollande told reporters. “An act of exceptional 
barbarity has been perpetrated against a newspaper, against liberty of 
expression, against journalists.” ...

Charlie Hebdo’s cover this week is on “Submission,” a book by Michel 
Houellebecq released today, which is sparking controversy with its 
depiction of a fictional France of the future led by an Islamic party 
and a Muslim president who bans women from the workplace ... <


On 04.01.2015 11:47, Kai Frederik Lorentzen wrote:
>
> The new novel of Michel Houellebecq!
>
> */Soumission/* will be published in French on Wednesday and a week 
> later in German (don't know about the English edition). In preparation 
> for this book, I'm currently rereading Huysmans' "A Rebours" in 
> translation. Houellebecq's last novel, "The Map and the Territory", 
> was very very good, and me I definitely don't want to wait with this 
> new one, so I'll start my read the minute the package arrives.
>
> Already by now this book, whether Houellebecq wanted it or not, is 
> pouring oil into the fierce debate about the role of Islam in Europe. 
> The interesting thing seems to be, as Sandra Kegel's review in 
> yesterdays's FAZ points out, that Houellebecq is constructing kinda 
> cultural liasion between islamists and right wing nihilists on issues 
> like polygamy or women's right to vote. This is, of course, a literary 
> fantasy and, thus, especially instructive. And according to Kegel the 
> book is of highest literary quality. So surely interesting enough to 
> give it an honest try. You may differ on this.
>
> http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/01/02/scare-tactics-michel-houellebecq-on-his-new-book/
>
> *"In general, there is a much stronger feeling of entropy than in my 
> other books."*
>
> http://themodernnovelblog.com/2015/01/03/michel-houellebecq-soumission-submission/
>
> > This novel has received considerable pre-publication publicity 
> because of its controversial subject matter. The book, set in 2022, 
> follows François, a university professor who teaches nineteenth 
> century French literature in the University of Paris III and is a 
> specialist on the writer, J-K Huysmans. At the previous French 
> presidential election, the run-off was between the Socialists and the 
> extreme right. Despite the fact that the country had moved to the 
> right, the Socialists won. However, as a result of the rise of the 
> extreme right, the Muslims had created their own party, the Muslim 
> Fraternity. To everyone’s surprise, in the first round of the 2022 
> presidential election, the Muslims were second to the extreme right. A 
> deal was made between the other main parties and the Muslims. However, 
> because of the uncertainty, there is considerable unease in France. 
> There seem to be violent outbreaks which the media and government keep 
> hidden. The university is “temporarily” closed. François leaves Paris, 
> fearing a civil war, and heads South-West. Arriving at the small town 
> of Martel (named after Charles Martel who beat the Arabs at Tours), he 
> meets the husband of a colleague. This man had worked for the French 
> internal security service but had just been given early retirement. He 
> tells François what he thinks is going to happen. The Muslim 
> Fraternity duly wins the election and suddenly but quietly, things 
> start to change. Women have to dress more conservatively and are 
> seemingly driven out of many jobs to become just wives and mothers. 
> Polygamy is adopted. Crime drops. Eventually, François is offered a 
> good job at the university, if he converts to Islam. <
>
> A happy 2015 to everybody!
>
> Kai
>
>
> On 04.01.2015 00:03, rich wrote:
>> *some things to look forward to for the new year
>>
>> The Rise of Islamic State: Isis and the New Sunni Revolution, Patrick 
>> Cockburn
>>
>> *
>> *Goebbels, Peter Longerich
>>
>> London Overground,* *Iain Sinclair
>>
>> Zero Zero Zero, Roberto Saviano
>>
>> Black Earth, Timothy Snyder
>>
>> John le Carré, Adam Sisman
>>
>> *
>> *The Dying Grass,W Vollmann
>>
>> *
>> *The Blue Guitar, John Banville
>>
>> *
>> *rich
>> *
>

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