Vanda by Marion Brunet

Vanda Reviews

• 
  Jo_Scho_Reads

  Vanda is a woman in her thirties, heavily tattooed and dark skinned. She has a six year old son, Noé, who means everything to her. Life is hard for them, living in a run down shack on the beach in Marseille, but they have each other and together they are invincible.
  
  But when Noé’s father, Simon, reappears after a long absence and discovers he has a child, everything changes. All of which Vanda has fought for dangles perilously. This can’t end well…
  
  Translated from the French, this is a bleak and unsettling tale; the unflinching and almost matter of fact details of poverty and desperate hunger really hit a nerve. And Vanda herself is a paradox; her love for her son is all consuming, but then I found myself questioning many of the choices you made.
  
  Rich with detail, vivid with imagery, this story is unforgiving and compelling, with an explosive denouement thrown in to finish it all off. Vanda is a woman like no other, she’s strong, fearless and formidable. I admired her, but I also wanted to shake her on occasion!
  
  Captivating and compelling, this author is one to look out for!
• 
  Zelda FeatzReviews

  Thank you Random Things Tours for this review copy.
  This was an unusual read for me. It’s a book way out of my comfort zone. At times, I was not sure if I completely understood where the story was headed. However, as a mother, I found this story both disturbing and deeply moving. Vanda is a troubled single mother of a six-year-old boy. She lives in a changing world and senses an end is near.
  This is a translated work and my first encounter with this author. Marion Brunet tells the story mainly from Vanda’s perspective but also shares some of Simon and Noé's views. She adds a lot of scenic detail, bringing the coastal town in the South of France to life. While giving you a graphic picture of police brutality during striker demonstrations. The author brings various topics into play, including poverty, mental health, police violence, global warming and a devoted single mother’s daily struggles.
  Vanda escapes the small village of her childhood where she lived in the shadow of a sexually promiscuous mother. Chasing her dreams she enrols in art school, however, when she discovers that she is not quite good enough she drops out. Living a life of freedom, drugs and alcohol when she discovers that she is pregnant. Motherhood was not part of her plan, and she is unsure how she will deal with it. When Noé is born, she falls in love with this little person – her little Limpet.
  Vanda tries her best, despite not always doing the right thing for Noé she adores him. She becomes dependent on this child to provide calm and comfort to her life. Facing an uncertain life with very little security Vanda witnesses the changes in her world which add to her anxiety. When Simon, Noé's father returns to town unexpectedly and demands custody of Noé, Vanda sees the end. Can she escape and keep little Noé by her side, or is this really the end?
  The idea of a child being raised by such an unstable person broke my heart. While at the same time feeling Vanda’s adoration for her son, she adored that little boy and was not the worst mother out there – but her son did not always come first. This little boy and his ability to read his mother's moods at such a young age stole my heart. The author did a fabulous job creating this little character. Noé was my motivation to keep flipping the pages, I had to find out what was going to happen to him.
  Vanda is an extremely complex character. She had an unsavoury childhood which revolved around her mother's sexuality. When she finally manages to distance herself she discovers life is not that easy. She learns that she is nothing special, that she is just another face in the crowd. No-one cares. Soon she is left feeling as if she does not matter – only Noé loves her – and sometimes she is too hard on him – leaving her feeling guilty. She has an almost unnatural dependence on her child. Vanda had to face the harsh realities of life on her own while trying to raise a little boy who she adored. No wonder she turned to violence to protect the only thing that mattered in her world.
  This is a moving, sad story about a single mother struggling through life in an ever-changing world. It is almost disturbing at times, but highlights how much change in the world we are faced with and how easy it can be to want to give up – to simply accept the end of life as we know it and surrender to an end we are sure is coming.
  
  https://featzreviews.com
• 
  Thebooktrail

  
  
  
  Discover the locations in the novel Vanda
  
  A dark French tale this one set in sunny Marseille but the sun of the location is the only kind you will see here. A mother and her son live here where she works in a psychiatric hospital and by night she drinks and hangs out with unsuitable men. She is proud of her son though and protects him from the harshness of life. And there is harshness right around the corner for his dad who doesn’t know he even exists comes to town and finds out about the boy. This proves to be difficult and very uncomfortable for all concerned and the dark and raw family emotions play out for all to see
  
  It’s this drama where all of the family members really stand out. This is a sad and taunt situation for all concerned . Family dramas like this aren’t usually my cup of tea but I found this to be utterly compelling. Vanda is one complex character and whilst utterly different and unstable, she is honest and good hearted deep down.
  
  All in all, the heart and soul of the novel for me was the young boy at its centre who was only 6 years old. The author doesn’t just write him, she scratches him and his character on the page. In fact this whole novel has a tone of brutal honesty and a stark portrayal of society in many ways.
  
  It might be set in sunny Marseille but there are plenty of dark clouds above…
• 
  Duncan Beattie (Fiction From Afar)

  Back in early March 2020 just before lockdown was cast upon us, Marion Brunet’s first English translation was published in the UK. The Summer Of Reckoning had already won the French literary prize le grand prix de littérature policière and after its UK publication it followed up this success by reaching the shortlist in the CWA Crime Fiction In Translation Dagger. The wonderfully atmospheric novel examined a very realistic story of restricted life opportunities, social rivalry and racism in a provisional town in the south of France. Following the success of that novel, it was only a matter of time until the same combination of publisher and translator would bring us another of Brunet’s standalone stories. I am happy to confirm that Vanda undoubtedly matches those high expectations.
  
  Set in the more immediately recognizable location of Marseilles, Vanda features a woman of the same name who lives with her 6 year old son Noé. While she holds down a job as a cleaner in a psychiatric hospital, we soon learn that otherwise Vanda lives a very unorthodox life. As a consequence of her poorly paid job she lives a very basic existence in a shack beside the sea that will often take in sea water at high tide and car that has become very old and unreliable. Without family in the vicinity and having avoided forming any close friendships she finds it hard to make ends meet while often struggling to pick up her son on time from school on time. Through the experiences she has endured, she has learned to rely on no one and to trust her own instinct when it comes to her own decisions - more critically of all the welfare of her son. Vanda is a complex woman who doesn’t always see the contradictions in her own lifestyle. She does attempt to tend to his every desire even when these are naturally impulsive for a child of her age even though he does not always get the required necessities and food. Furthermore she regularly makes dubious lifestyle choices which are not always in his interest in order to receive the gratifications to which she feels entitled, even if this means leaving him alone. Her child who has never experienced any other life or met any relatives, does knows he is deeply loved and feels very secure in a tender yet clingy relationship with his mother.
  
  However the relative tranquillity that they share is unintentionally rocked to the core with the return of Vanda’s former boyfriend Simon to the city. Since they broke up he has developed his life and progressed his career over the last seven years in the distant French capital. His return to his home city is due to the bereavement of his mother. Having built a relationship with his partner Chloé, a Parisian girl from a wealthy background, he is initially mildly interested in seeing how Vanda is living her life. That is until she gives him the completely unexpected revelation that he has a son. This implications of this creates great upheaval for Noé and separately to each of his parents.
  
  It is evident that at the time of her Noé’s birth that Vanda had chosen not to inform Simon of the existence of the child and she had never been introduced to his mother. Upon her disclosure Simon is insistent that he want to meet his biological child. This poses a challenge to Vanda as for the very first time since his birth she faces the prospect of having to allow another adult to purposely meet Noé. This is alien concept to her as she has been everything for her son until this point. “Vanda doesn’t understand the fragility of china, preambles and precautions. Consequently, for a brutal, solitary woman, a child – a child with eyes like a featherless bird, his translucent skin and his total dependency – wasn’t sure she was certain she could handle.”
  
  As the story develops, both protagonists are offered a degree of sympathy and understanding from the reader with plenty space for each of them to recall significant events and their contrasting experiences from their lives up to that point. As Vanda feels that as Noé is her sole concern, she is firmly of the belief that she can provide everything that he would need without need for compromise. Yet no matter how she tried to hide it, the deeply upsetting thought emerges that maybe her son one day may not be fully dependent upon her. As she becomes unsettled with Simon’s appearances, she considers the extent she would be prepared go to prevent that from happening. At the same time Simon is deeply conflicted. He had been planning to sell his mother’s home and return to his rather comfortable and settled life in Paris with Chloé after his mother’s funeral. Yet he spends time back in Marseilles he has to decide if there is an opening in his life to remain and try to gain time to get to know his son. When Simon sees the basic living conditions that his son lives in, he is appalled. His thoughts are hardened when he is further exasperated by Vanda’s defensive responses and the further insights he observes into her lifestyle.
  As we learn the background to Vanda’s life, it is sadly not a surprise to hear that she experienced a traumatic upbringing. For so much of her life she has been told how she should behave and how she should think, while she regularly experiences prejudice for her dark skin and tattoos. She has always rebelled against these mentalities. What brings her hope are the recollections of a time before motherhood when she did feel warmth and kindness. From her perspective she is already deeply regretting the disclosure to Simon that he has a son, let alone introduce him to Noé’s world, who she can see is intrigued by the man’s presence. She finds herself infuriated by Simon’s application of his ideals when it comes to the welfare of the child. Furthermore for her there is no need for Simon to have any interest in Noé. The two of them have survived without his interest and indeed his money until now. Despite evidence to the contrary she assures herself that she will ensure that they have no need to do so. As she sees it he has his own settled life in Paris and should he wish to do so, he could chose to bring up a child of his own there. Vanda wows not to give him the choice and plots her own resolution which she will only share with her son.
  
  Unbeknown to her the likelihood of Simon having a child with Chloé is remote, which Simon is very much aware of. The encounters with his son have led to a change in priorities for Simon, also fostered by staying in his mother’s house, having her memories around him as well as reconnecting with his aunt and cousin. He starts to recall strongly his long departed sense of family and perhaps even rose tint the memories of his childhood. Simon begins to and aspires to create a similar environment for Noé. Before long he is considering whether and how he could provide a less meagre upbringing and stable home of bricks and mortar for his son. As his thoughts develop his mind is full of thought of shared access and making up a room at his late mother's house for shared custody. The arrival of Chloé in Marseilles is not helpful. She vocally does not relish sharing Simon with his son, nor can she hide her displeasure to be in his hometown where she sees more blatantly sexist behaviour than in Paris. Her impatience with Simon’s considerations and her immediate distaste of Vanda actually fires up his desire to bluntly force an immediate resolution.
  
  The genius in this story is the carefully nuanced and understated narrative expertly translated by Katherine Gregor which illuminates how the status quo has forever changed for both protagonists and unwittingly how through their well-intentioned yet self-absorbed considerations, their contrasting experiences and counteractions furrow a unbridgeable chasm in their approaches towards Noé. The tragedy is that neither parent has fully considered the thoughts of Noé who is both sensitive and perceptive. He has observed the testy conversations between the mother he adores and the father his actions suggest he would like to know. While an ominous and uneasy sentiment has been building steadily since their first joint encounter with Noé, the occurrence of a deeply disturbing bad omen shortly before the story’s climax strongly compounds the notion that these deeply contracting approaches will not bode well for the young child. The conclusion is a dramatic and sudden outcome from which the unfavourable effects will be long lasting.
  
  While Marion Brunet has previously been better known in France for her young adult fiction, once again she has excelled at creating a breath taking, deeply realistic and thought provoking psychological drama that highlights the divisions in our society so successfully. The guile to her craft is so compelling efficacious as it provokes divided loyalties leading the reader to side towards whichever standpoint most closely matches their own before realising that actually neither is what is most important here. I believe that the polarised behaviours of the characters will deeply split opinion between many who read this very effective novel. However I feel most will be united in silent reflection following the story’s closure.
• 
  Marie-Nel

  J'avais très envie de rencontrer cette Vanda et savoir qui elle était. Je ne connaissais pas non plus Marion Brunet et je suis très contente d’avoir pu la découvrir.
  J'ai donc suivi avec intérêt Vanda. C’est une jeune femme un peu paumée, personne ne la connait vraiment, elle habite avec son fils Noé dans un cabanon au bord de la plage. Elle travaille dans un hôpital psychiatrique comme agent hospitalier. Elle vit dans la marginalité, elle boit, a des hommes de passage, des coups d’un soir comme on dit. Elle protège son fils Noé comme une louve, ils ont tous deux une relation fusionnelle. Alors quand le père de l'enfant, Simon, refait son apparition, Vanda voit son monde basculer. Simon vit à Paris avec une compagne, est revenu dans le Sud pour le décès de sa mère. Lorsqu’il revoit Vanda, il apprend alors qu'il est le père d'un petit garçon de 6 ans. Il veut alors prendre sa place de père, mais Vanda ne le voit pas de cet œil. Elle ne veut que personne entre dans sa bulle d'amour qu'elle a créée avec son fils.
  
  Cette rencontre avec Vanda a été percutante pour moi. Je me suis pris en pleine face la vie de cette jeune femme. Elle mène une vie dissolue, entre fêtes, beuveries, joints et en même temps elle essaie d'avoir une vie posée, avec son fils, de lui amener le plus de stabilité possible entre l'école et le cabanon. Elle aime aussi son travail, elle a beaucoup d'empathie pour les malades, elle sait leur parler. C’est une femme vraiment ambigüe par ses différents comportements.
  Je l'ai trouvée très attachante, j'avais envie de l’aider, de lui garder son fils lorsqu'elle s'absente, j'aurais aimé pouvoir la conseiller et lui éviter bien des soucis. Mais ce n'est qu'un personnage de roman et pourtant j'ai vraiment eu l'impression qu'elle existait réellement.
  Les autres personnages sont très attachants aussi. Impossible de résister à Noé, ce petit garçon qui réfléchit déjà beaucoup du haut de ses six ans, qui a déjà des paroles sensées, et qui défend sa mère contre tout. Et je n'ai pas pu rester de marbre non plus devant Simon, devant la tristesse d'avoir perdu sa mère, d’arriver à gérer le deuil et les différents obligations. Apprendre qu'il a un enfant est pour lui salvateur et lui donne une grosse bouffée de vie. Ces trois personnages sont forts, chacun dans leur rôle, et apportent beaucoup à l'histoire.
  
  Tout ceci est porté par une plume très incisive de l'autrice. Elle ne mâche pas ses mots, décrit avec beaucoup de justesse, elle est très honnête et porte un regard juste sur la société. Le ton est corrosif, limite insolent, et pousse le lecteur dans ses retranchements, dans les idées qu'il peut avoir sur le sujet. L’autrice dépeint très clairement la société de maintenant, avec ses travers, où la critique est tellement facile, où l’égocentrisme de certains empêchent les autres de bien vivre. On marche tous avec des œillères, on ne veut pas voir ce qu'il se passe tout près de nous, on préfère faire l’autruche, plutôt qu'aider, écouter et tendre la main tout simplement. Comme vous pouvez le voir, ce roman ne peut laisser indifférent, il marque les esprits et nous fait nous poser plein de questions.
  
  Le choix narratif de l'autrice est judicieux. Elle utilise en effet la troisième personne du singulier pour raconter, ce n'est forcement celui auquel je suis le plus sensible, mais je trouve qu'il colle parfaitement avec ce genre d'histoire, car il m'a permis de garder une certaine distance avec les personnages et de ne pas me prendre de plein fouet tous les sentiments qui les traversent. Je les ai regardés évoluer, tout en ayant très envie de les seconder. J'ai très bien réussi à ressentir la colère de Vanda, la frustration de Simon, l'amour de Noé pour sa maman. Les sentiments sont forts et transpercent les mots.
  J'ai aussi très bien su me placer dans les lieux, je regardais la plage à travers les yeux de Vanda, j'ai ressenti l'air marin, les vagues. Tout est vraiment très bien retranscrit de la part de l’autrice et ce, sans en faire des tonnes, sans lourdeurs dans le texte, tout reste tout le temps très fluide et agréable à lire.
  
  J'ai passé un moment de lecture très fort avec ce livre. Je ne suis pas prête d'oublier les personnages, j'aurais même aimé rester encore un peu avec eux pour faire durer les choses. Le final est tout aussi percutant que le reste du livre, il vous coupe le souffle, en quelques lignes tout bascule. Je m'imagine la suite, et j'ai peur pour Vanda et Noé. Leur amour restera toujours le plus fort et leur permettra de tout assumer. Je l’espère très fort pour eux. C’est assez fou cette sensation que j'ai que les personnages existent vraiment, j'ai peur pour eux, et j'aimerais beaucoup avoir de leurs nouvelles, alors qu’ils sont fictifs, et que cela ne peut arriver. Ce sentiment est vraiment étrange.
  
  Je découvre avec l’histoire de Vanda et Noé, une autrice, Marion Brunet. J'aime beaucoup sa façon de raconter une histoire, et j'aimerais beaucoup la lire à nouveau. Elle a écrit un autre roman que j'aimerais beaucoup lire, L’été circulaire, qui a remporté plusieurs prix. Ce sera une bonne occasion de retrouver l'autrice dans une autre histoire. En tout cas, je vais la suivre de près pour ne pas louper une prochaine parution. C’est une autrice au style très intéressant, qui marque.
  
  Je ne peux que vous conseiller la lecture de ce livre. Pour moi, elle s'est faite très facilement, la fluidité a beaucoup aidé, mais aussi de vouloir savoir ce qui allait arriver aux personnages faisait que je tournais les pages encore plus vite. Et en même temps, j'avais envie de ralentir ma lecture pour rester le plus longtemps possible avec eux. Un double sentiment assez complexe qui prouve que c’est un très bon roman. Je suis persuadée que vous vivrez vous aussi des moments forts avec ce roman.
  
• 
  Sharon Rimmelzwaan

  Whenever I see a Bitter Lemon Press blog tour invitation, I always reply so fast! BLP translated fiction books are amongst my favourites. Vanda is yet another excellent release from this publisher.
  
  Marion Brunet has written such a deep, dark and atmospheric novel with Vanda. From the second I began reading I was hooked, nothing could tear me away from Vanda for too long. I was captivated until I read the last line in this book.
  
  Told from the points of view of Vanda and Simon, two very different people with totally different ways off life. Vanda lives in Marseille,and she is so poor she lives in a shack by the Sea that can become flooded at times too. She is a cleaner at the psychiatric hospital and she struggles to collect her son, Noé, from school. He is all she has and she does what she can.
  
  Noé's father,Simon, turns up and discovers he has a son. Vanda kept her pregnancy from him when they split up. Now he wants to get to know his son Vanda feels that everything is changing and maybe not for the good.
  
  Vanda is a story in which the characters, except for Noé, aren't very likable. Vanda is so damaged from her past that she does her best for her child but is such a contradiction as she puts her own needs first for the majority of the time. She smothers him but on the other hand does not really care for him correctly. It's the only way she is able to function the reader can see this. The amount of misery in her past and the abuse she suffered has marked her psyche and we see this clearly.
  
  As I said Vanda is a hard character to feel sorry for, but the way she is treated, the unfairness and the abuse she experiences do make you want to cry and scream at what, or who allows this? This is almost a tragedy that the emotions pour from these pages, dragging the reader in right up to their neck. Such a sublime character study of a tragic woman.
  
  
  I have not read Marion Brunet's other book, but Vanda has made me want go to find the first book. This author doesn't hold back in her writing. Vanda is a snapshot of society today and the people in it. Every reader will have their own opinion on this book dependant on their own viewpoints.
  
  The translation of Vanda is so good you would think it was written with English as a first language. Katherine Gregor translations skills have made sure nothing is lost in translation. Every nuance, every emotion is there, just pouring from the pages.
  
  This book is so much of a stark portrait that it rings truth as you read. This ensures the reader cannot put this book down. I found it almost like something akin to a hypnotic hold. A triumph of a book, I definitely say if you like translated fiction novel that pulls no punches, pick Vanda up.
• 
  Cheryl M-M

  I know for many this story equates to an image of motherhood, the lioness who will protect her offspring no matter the consequences. She will do anything to keep the outside world from taking him and interfering. That relationship takes precedence above everything and anyone else, including that of the other parent – in this case the father who doesn’t become aware of his son until six years after Vanda gave birth to him.
  
  I didn’t take any of that away from this story. What stands out for me is the pure narcissism, the selfishness, and the complete and utter lack of accountability for choices and actions. Vanda lives life on the seat of her pants. Instant gratification is her mantra – people, parties, substance abuse and of course sexual gratification.
  
  Does that mean Vanda isn’t a victim of a patriarchal society, of abuse or assault? Does it mean she isn’t a strong woman who is willing to stand up for what is right and protect the weaker? No, but it also doesn’t negate the fact she isn’t a perfect example of motherhood. This story is a perfect example of neglect, of a bond created on the lack of equality between a child who has no other source of basic needs than his mother, and a mother to whom he is a second thought and an obstacle.
  
  So, no this wasn’t an example of a paragon of virtuous motherhood and a strong woman protecting the bond between mother and child. It is one of a person who is incapable of making the right choices for her son, because her needs and sense of superiority and possession will always come first. To the detriment of herself, those around her, and of course her child.
  
  Brunet has a knack for writing a story that can create a division and make us aware of the fact that depending on our own frame of references the reader will digest, experience and ultimately come to completely different views on the material they have read. It’s also that noirish quality of her work, which captivates whilst stirring the emotions, that has readers coming back for more. The translator manages to capture the essence perfectly.
• 
  Donna Morfett

  This is a dark, brooding, atmospheric novel. Told from the points of view of Vanda and Simon, it is an interesting but heartbreaking view into two lives that have had different beginnings and different paths after a brief period where they came together.
  Vanda lives a very unorthodox lifestyle. She clearly lives in abject poverty, in a hut by the sea, which at times can become flooded. Her car is barely running, and she as a job in a psychiatric hospital which means she can struggle to pick her young son up from school. Noe is continually referred to both as Limpet, and tiny. He seems like a sweet kid and adores his mother, but their relationship seemed quite unhealthy to me. Vanda put her own needs over his a lot of the time, but is smothering in others. He's not unloved, but hes not really cared for properly either. I dont really know what I think about her. She is a damaged woman and doing her best, but at the same time, she makes rubbish choices which continue her chaotic lifestyle and effect her kid.
  To throw a spanner in the works, Simon, someone from Vanda's past, returns home when his mother dies. He learns that Noe is his child, and is keen to get to know him. He is living in Paris, has a successful career, and a girlfriend. Since learning about Noe, and trying to deal with the death of his mother, he wonders if what he has is enough. I warmed to him more. He obviously has his own issues, but seems to want to make positive changes as a result of finding out hes a father.
  The writing style is fairly fast paced, and in a style in which you cant stop reading. The translator has done a brilliant job, I wouldnt have known this book wasnt initially written in English.
  The author is award winning, and if you read this, you will understand why. Its also not a very long book, so well worth taking a chance on.
• 
  Yoy

  Quel désastre. Voilà ce que j'ai souvent pensé en lisant l'histoire de ces trois personnages principaux, et de la société.
  
  Vanda, une femme pauvre, au plus bas de l’échelle sociale, ne connait que la misère, réaliste mais cynique envers le monde, socialement incapable aussi. Elle habite dans un cabanon à la mer et a un boulot dans un hôpital psychiatrique. La seule chose qu’elle a dans la vie, à laquelle elle se raccroche, qu’elle accapare entièrement, qu’elle veut férocement être à elle toute seule, c’est son fils Noé.
  
  Simon, le père de Noé. Il est soi-disant doux, ne se fâche ni se bagarre jamais, mais attention, en dessous de cette gentillesse apparente, il est prétentieux, a un sentiment de supériorité évident. Et il veut que tout se passe comme lui le veut. Simon vit avec une femme qui ne veut pas d’enfants (lui en veut) et apprend soudainement qu’il a un fils de six ans.
  
  Et puis Noé, l’enfant, victime sans le savoir d’une mère qui lui évite (presque consciemment) de se déployer, qui sortira de cette éducation traumatisé, mais qui aime sa mère, comme le font tous les enfants, car c’est leur seule sécurité.
  
  Avec ces trois personnages, Vanda défensive, Simon avec son sentiment de supériorité, et un fils qu’ils veulent accaparer tous les deux, une très bonne intrigue se développe. C’est bien ficelé, les relations et les émotions sont bien décrites, le suspens monte graduellement.
  En filigrane, il y a d’autres thèmes sociaux, comme les conditions de vie et de travail dans l’asyle psychiatrique, les contrats renouvelables et donc incertains, les manifestations et leur brutalité.
  Et puis, il y a des choses agréables. La mer toujours présente, les collègues au travail, les amis de Vanda sur la plage.
  
  Le style
  Bref, ce roman plait beaucoup du côté de l’intrigue. Par contre, le style a fait en sorte que je l’ai trouvé lassant à la fin.
  Toute l’histoire est écrite en argot, avec plein d’insultes. Pour les passages concernant Vanda on peut comprendre. Cela peut se lire comme un monologue intérieur de Vanda.
  Mais pour les autres passages, quand il s’agit de Simon, c’est différent. Il ne fait pas partie de cette très basse classe, ce n’est pas sa façon de parler. Je n’ai pas remarqué une grande différence dans le style, sauf vers la fin. Pour les passages qui ne concernent pas Vanda ou ses amis / collègues, j’aurais préféré une utilisation du français normale. Maintenant, c’est à croire que l’auteur ne peut que s’exprimer en argot. Et c’est la raison pour laquelle j’ai trouvé le livre lassant vers la fin.
  En plus, il y a une manière de raconter en enchainant les pensées, les actions, par des virgules, dans une même phrase. Pour Vanda, à nouveau, c'est bien. Ce ton est assez triste et rappelle le monologue intérieur. Mais il perd son intérêt quand Simon est le personnage principal. Et alors, cela devient vite lassant.
  
  Mère toxique
  L'auteure a choisi de montrer les évènements, de ne pas les expliquer psychologiquement... pas en profondeur. Elle parle uniquement de l'amour de Vanda pour son fils. Elle ne parle pas, et selon moi, ne montre pas suffisamment bien, les effets de ce comportement étouffant sur le garçon. Elle parle aussi tout le temps d'amour, alors qu'il est évident qu'il ne s'agit pas d'amour. Vanda veut que Noé soit comme elle le veut: sa possession, son objet, qui fera toujours ce qu'elle veut, qui lui vouera un amour incroyable, ne se mariera pas, restera habiter auprès d'elle toute sa vie.
  Ce n'est pas de l'amour. A voir les critiques, beaucoup de lecteurices le comprennent. Mais d'autres, hélas, méprennent le comportement de Vanda pour de l'amour maternel vrai. C'est pourquoi je trouve que l'auteure aurait dû plus approfondir le sujet.
  
  Conclusion
  Très belle histoire, thèmes intéressants, mais il aurait fallu plus différencier les voix de Vanda et de Simon, maintenant c'est lassant après un temps. Et puis, le thème psychologique mère toxique - fils aurait dû être explicité un peu (au moins).
• 
  Lynsey

  ‘Vanda’ is an unflinchingly honest look at a relationship between mothers and sons. But it's a dark tale albeit one full of love. I found it very compelling and loved the character of Vanda. She is a complex character, full of light and shades, shaped with empathy and full of nuances.
  
  Vanda is a mother of a six-year boy called Noe and is devoted to him, he is her reason for getting up in the morning and submitting to societal demands. Vanda is a free spirit, one who doesn't prescribe to normal ideals, she lives in a hut on the beach, one that floods with high tides, throws beach parties, goes out drinking and leaves her son sleeping in the car... There is no denying that she loves Noe with all her heart though. When Simon returns to Marseille due to his mother's death he catches up with Vanda only to be told he is Noe’s father. He hadn't planned on having kids but once he knows he has to scratch that itch. He steadily becomes concerned with Vanda’s behaviour towards her son and this leads to the final showdown in the book.
  
  The author can make the reader empathise with all parties in the book and that is a skill. There are personal reasons why I became engaged with the book though as there are parts of it where I can recognise parts of my childhood, albeit I always had a safe environment. But the hippy mum, check. Wild adventures, check. The love between Vanda and Noe, check. This is what shines off the pages - love and what makes this story special. It makes me think of Hideously Kinky in that sense.
  
  I really enjoyed this one. Let me know if you read it.
• 
  Areadinghuman

  A dark and intersting story that makes you think about the world we live in
  
  Key words: society, love, poverty, dark, fiction, contemporary
  
  I would like to thank the publisher for sending me this copy as well as the other reviewer with who I read this book. It was really interesting to read about our different views and opinions about this book. This story is about the love from a mother to her son and how the arrival of the father is going to change everything. It also makes you wonder and think about the society we live in. This story is quite powerful because it could very realistically happen any time. The characters are likeable but also sometimes outrageous in how they react, think and how they live. Life is difficult, this book shows it well. It is quite dark but sometimes full of hope. I enjoyed it but at the same time, it made me a bit uncomfortable. I think this is because I already knew people could be in this situation but I don’t really know how to help. It is quite a difficult subject. I recommend it.
  3.5/5
  
• 
  Angi Plant

  In Vanda we see a character who lives on the edge of society. She’s bringing up a child the only way she knows how. Her world is different to that of everyone else, and her friends are the others on the same fringes of the society. Nothing about Vanda is everyday and she knows that she’s disapproved of.
  
  Her son Noé, otherwise known as Limpet, has a strange relationship with his mother, understandably. And life is about to change for them in the most shocking of ways, when his father appears and life takes turns that are shocking and heart rending.
  
  This isn’t a long book, but I think it’s one of those books that needs to be read, if only to learn how others live who don’t have familial support and a comfortable life.
  
  With thanks to Anne Cater, Bitter Lemon Press and the author for the advanced reading copy of this book.
• 
  Cecilebe

  Écriture simple, directe, brute. Des personnages et leurs névroses décrits avec justesse. Comment se sort-on (ou pas ?) de la d’où l’on vient ?
• 
  Charline

  Un roman de lutte sociale, politique, nourri de sentiments. Un livre noir et bouleversant.
• 
  Zoé

  Ce livre est incroyable.
• 
  Alycia

  DNF - P.91/216
• 
  Anne-Sophie

  Quelle claque.
  L’histoire de Vanda, une écorchée de la vie et de son fils Noé. Quand Simon, le père, revient en ville, leur équilibre est menacé.
  
  Un roman plein de force et de rage.
• 
  Baya Kanane

  Comme l’écrit Christine Ferniot de Télérama : « Vanda est la voix des perdants majuscules ».
  Émouvant, poignant et bouleversant.
• 
  Vanessa Vallos

  Une tranche de vie. Quelques mois dans la vie de Vanda , au moment où le père de son enfant revient et que tout bascule dans sa vie : le travail, les projets , tout.
  Sa bataille contre la vie.
• 
  Emma

  VERDICT: Another powerful and very touching portrait of precariousness by Marion Brunet. She won’t let you be indifferent, and might even change your view of contemporary France.
  
  My full review is here:
  
  https://wordsandpeace.com/2022/04/18/...