Reviews

That Time of Year by Marie NDiaye

barnstormingbooks's review

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

 

One of NDiaye’s early novels, this is a strange and disorienting story. For me these horror tales set in rural areas are always pretty cringey for me, setting the small town weirdos against the more cosmopolitan vacationer that falls into a place and a culture that is to be feared. In this variation a vacationer stays beyond summer and is almost melted by the town's dull existence and weather after the disappearance of his wife and child. This is a book about identity, place and what it means to be an outsider that desperately wants to be seen and accepted no matter the cost. 

Maybe it is because I’m a rural girl, but the disturbing part of this story was not the small town weirdness, but the callous way the protagonist searches (or actually doesn’t search) for his family and his need to become part of the community, almost invading and trying to force his way into the society without offering anything in return. Something that many small towns in Oregon fear as the cost of living in the urban areas becomes so high and technology allows for more remote work… the contestant debate - does the possibility of a new tax base and outside dollars help or hurt a communities culture, identity and power structures. 

 

mzsilv's review against another edition

mysterious slow-paced

3.5

shelf_discovery's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

4.0

anneke_b's review

4.0

So I was hesitant to start this, because of the lower ratings, but I found myself really enjoying this one. Yes, this book isn't really going anywhere, and it is a tad absurd, however NDiaye is doing a great job in creating a compelling atmosphere and I was hooked.

And I love myself a good, shorter book from time to time, and this book just really scores on that!

matthewmeriwether's review

4.0

go off marie.

lauralhart's review

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

3.0

jaclyn_sixminutesforme's review

4.0

THAT TIME OF YEAR by Marie NDiaye (translated from French by Jordan Stump) was an incredibly unique read, and while it gave me vibes of Kafka's THE TRIAL, it is a narrative that operates in a really distinct way.
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We are following Herman, a Parisian man vacationing with his wife and child in a village. As August has ended and the weather has started to turn for the season, it is time for the family to return to Paris. It felt eerie to be reading this at the end of August given this plot connection!
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The narrative opens as Herman realizes his wife and child are missing, and we follow him on this entrancingly nightmarish quest to find them. The community around him has a perplexing hierarchy that seems to make sense to the revolving-door of characters Herman meets, yet as a reader I fell into step with Herman's befuddlement and frustration with the systems. At times I had to remind myself whether he was even still tracking on his original course of inquiry (hence my Kafka-like feeling, I think!).
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At times feeling like a short story, and in many moments feeling like this world was slowly closing in on Herman, this was a delightfully perplexing read that I virtually devoured in one sitting!

Out 8 September from Two Lines (#gifted).

mimooo's review

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

equal measures terrifying and comic... actually mostly terrifying. what the hell is going on in NDiaye's mind omfg. hostages, tulpas, bureaucrats, culty villagers, surveillance, parasitism, decay all because they were greedy for a bit more summer. NDiaye's worldbuilding is crazzzzyyyyyyy this shit is like the  c*lonia d*gnidad meets small business tyrants meets Ice by Anna Cavan. the stuff of nightmares, psychologically draining, and claustrophobic. who is doing it like her!!!!!!

zukythebookbum's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No

3.5

haunted_klaus's review against another edition

mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0