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The Martins

Author(s): David Foenkinos

Location(s): Paris

Genre(s): Fiction

Era(s): Contemporary

Location

Content

A disillusioned Parisian writer finds inspiration in the ordinary lives of his neighbors, the Martins.

Is it true that every life is the stuff of novels? Or are some people just too ordinary?

This is the question a struggling Parisian writer asks when he challenges himself to write about the first person he sees when he steps outside his apartment. Secretly hoping to meet the beautiful woman who occasionally smokes on his street, he instead sets eyes on octogenarian Madeleine. She’s happy to become the subject of his project, but first she needs to put her shopping away….

Wondering if his project is doomed to be hopelessly banal, he soon finds himself tangled in the lives of Madeleine’s family. Though calm on the surface, the Martins have secrets, troubles, and woes, and the writer discovers that the most compelling story is that of an ordinary life.

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Book Reviews

Lead Review

Author: Tina Hartas

As an author, where do you find inspiration for your next book? The struggling protagonist in this novel decides to go out onto the street and accost the first person he meets, in the...

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