The Girl from the Chartreuse by Pierre Peju

The Girl from the Chartreuse

Pierre Peju

This is not an easy read because of Peju's style of writing as well as the events of the story. The reward is in the language which is both melancholy and beautifully tender. It gradually reveals and draws together the emotionally crippled and isolated characters offering some hope for their release.

Extract
'All I ever want, doesn't matter where I am, is to get away. I used to wrap her up nice and warm, lay her on the back seat and off we'd go. I always managed to keep her with me each time I found a job. Refused to let her out of my sight. Wasn't having it.'
'Why not?'
'I don't know, or rather yes I do know.'
'You'd have forgotten her?'
'Yes. Not abandoned: forgotten.'
Parallels
  • In Those Arms by Camille Laurens
  • The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
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Violence
Explicit sexual content