User:Maxscully/The Notebook (Agota Kristof)

The Notebook is a novel by Ágota Kristóf published in 1986. It is the first volume of the "Twins Trilogy", the second volume being The Proof and the trilogy ending with The Third Lie.

Summary
In the Big City, war is raging. To avoid it, a woman leaves her two twins with their grandmother in the country. The grandmother, a mean, dirty, stingy old woman, only just admits them into her home. The two children, left to their own devices, will learn to overcome the cold, hunger and daily cruelties in a devastated country.

The "Big Book" is the one in which the two children are forced to write down their discoveries and learning as objectively as possible.

For example, "It is forbidden to write: 'The Little City is beautiful', because the Little City can be beautiful for us and ugly for someone else.

The two children, monstrous and fascinating, reject all morals and even all values and, despite themselves, build their own.

This cold and factual account throws the reader right into the reality of war.

The Notebook and the "Abbeville Affair"
Agota Kristof's Grand Cahier is also known for the controversy it generated, following what the press called the "Abbeville affair". On November 23, 2000, police officers interrupted the class of a ninth grade teacher in Abbeville to take him to the police station, following a complaint from some parents of the students, who had stated that the teacher was recommending pornographic readings to their children, whereas it was the Grand Cahier.

The work was nevertheless on the curriculum of many high schools, and considered a classic of contemporary literature. The affair was quickly closed, notably thanks to the support of many intellectuals and professors for the teacher. For his part, the Minister of National Education, Jack Lang, sent a letter of support to the principal of the college: "This is an abnormal situation that I cannot approve. These choices are the sole responsibility of the teams that you are responsible for encouraging.

This novel thus opens the debate on the censorship of the "teen literature", and is very often taken as an example in this context. Thus, in her essay Who is afraid of teenage literature?, Annie Rolland devotes an entire chapter to this controversy.

Influence
The Mother 3 video game was influenced by the major themes of The Great Notebook. The game's main characters, Lucas and Claus, are named after the book's narrators. The game's designer, Shigesato Itoi, himself a writer, praised the novel.

Film
The novel was adapted by Hungarian director János Szász in 2013 (Hungarian title: A nagy füzet).

The film was selected to represent Hungary at the 2014 Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. It competed under the English title The Notebook.

Theater
Adapted and directed by Catherine Vidal, it was performed in Montreal at Théâtre Prospero in 2009, then in Ottawa at the National Arts Centre in 2012. Olivier Morin and Renaud Lacelle-Bourdon play the roles of the twins.

Audio book

 * Texte intégral ; narrateur : Éric Herson-Macarel ; support : 3 disques compacts audio ; durée : 3 h 24 min environ ; référence éditeur : Livraphone LIV 294C.
 * Texte intégral ; narrateur : Éric Herson-Macarel ; support : 1 disque compact audio MP3 ; durée : 3 h 24 min environ ; référence éditeur : Livraphone LIV 294M.

Notes and references
