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Bottom of the pile
8
/100
I Index Overall Rating
Readers
9/100Critics
7/100Scholars
Author:
Annie Ernaux, Tanya Leslie
Publisher:
Seven Stories Press
Date:
October 26, 2021
One of France's most distinguished literary voices offers journal entries she recorded between 1985 and 1992, literary impressions of life in a Paris suburb.
What The Reviewers Say
... brief, loosely related descriptions.
... void of emotion and meaning, focusing instead on the physical world—things, people, and their actions.
Little of what Elkin writes is unto itself that interesting: she sees women in red hats, a pair of awful glittery sandals, a mom with kids who kick and squirm. The observations are hurried and unedited. Some moments are inconsequential, some affecting, and all merit her attention.
Exteriors is perhaps best enjoyed when leafed through at random. Many of Ernaux’s quotidian observations on the train and in the supermarket probe and amuse, while giving pause for thought.
