Read Around Europe Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Europe.
Best books from Europe (2669)
641.
Le suspendu de Conakry by Jean-Christophe Rufin FR
FranceDescription:
Comment cet Aurel Timescu peut-il être Consul de France ? Avec son accent roumain, sa dégaine des années trente et son passé de pianiste de bar, il n’a pourtant rien à faire au Quai d’Orsay. Il végète d’ailleurs dans des postes subalternes. Cette fois, il est en Guinée, lui qui ne supporte pas la chaleur. Il prend son mal en patience, transpire, boit du tokay et compose des opéras... Quand, tout à coup, survient la seule chose au monde qui puisse encore le passionner : un crime inexpliqué. Suspendu, ce plaisancier blanc ? À quoi ? Au mât de son voilier, d’accord. Mais avant ? Suspendu à des év... continue
642.
La porte du voyage sans retour by David Diop FR
Description:
"La porte du voyage sans retour" est le surnom donné à l'île de Gorée, d'où sont partis des millions d'Africains au temps de la traite des Noirs. C'est dans ce qui est en 1750 une concession française qu'un jeune homme débarque, venu au Sénégal pour étudier la flore locale. Botaniste, il caresse le rêve d'établir une encyclopédie universelle du vivant, en un siècle où l'heure est aux Lumières. Lorsqu'il a vent de l'histoire d'une jeune Africaine promise à l'esclavage et qui serait parvenue à s'évader, trouvant refuge quelque part aux confins de la terre sénégalaise, son voyage et son destin ba... continue
643.
L'art de perdre : roman by Alice Zeniter FR
Description:
Alors que la France est traversée par une crise identitaire, l'écrivaine s'interroge sur ses origines algériennes dont elle ne connaît rien, du fait du silence douloureux de sa famille. Elle choisit alors de raconter le destin des générations successives, entre la France et l'Algérie. ©Electre 2017.
645.
A Spell in Provence by Marie Laval EN
Description:
After losing her job in England, Amy Carter uses her redundancy payment to start a new life in France, turning Bellefontaine, an overgrown Provençal farmhouse, into a successful hotel. Though she has big plans for her new home, none of them involves falling in love — least of all with Fabien Coste, the handsome but arrogant owner of the nearby château. As romance blossoms in the beautiful Provençal countryside, disturbing events at the farmhouse hint at a dark mystery — a destructive, centuries-old attachment between the ladies of Bellefontaine and the ducs de Coste. As Amy struggles to unrave... continue
646.
Hermanos de alma by David Diop ES
Description:
"La desgarradora historia de un soldado senegalés en las trincheras de la Primera Guerra Mundial. Alfa Ndiaye es senegalés y ha acabado combatiendo con el ejército francés en las trincheras de la Primera Guerra Mundial. En el mismo regimiento también lucha su amigo Mademba Diop, que es herido de gravedad en el frente. Cuando Mademba le pide que lo mate para evitar sufrimientos inútiles, Alfa se siente incapaz de cumplir su deseo. Ansioso por vengar la muerte de su compañero, cada noche se desliza con sigilo hacia las posiciones enemigas, elige a un soldado cuidándose de no ser descubierto, cla... continue
647.
In the Cafe of Lost Youth by Patrick Modiano EN
Description:
Four narrators, a student from a café, a private detective hired by an aggrieved husband, the heroine herself and one of her lovers, construct a portrait of Jacqueline Delanque, otherwise known as Louki. The daughter of a single mother who works in the Moulin Rouge, Louki grows up in poverty in Montmartre. Her one attempt to escape her background fails when she is rejected from the Lycée Jules-Ferry. She meanders on through life, into a cocaine habit, and begins frequenting the Café Condé, whose regulars call her 'Louki'. She drifts into marriage with a real estate agency director, but finds n... continue
648.
Fever by Jean Marie Le Clezio EN
Description:
In these nine unforgettable and impressionistic 'tales of little madness', the Nobel Prize-winning author Le Clézio explores how the physical sensations we experience every day can be as strong as feelings of love or hate, with their power to bring chaos to our lives. In 'The Day that Beaumont became Acquainted with his Pain', a man with toothache spends the night seeking ways to disown his throbbing jaw; in 'Fever', Roch finds his mind transported by sunstroke; while in 'A Day of Old Age' little Joseph tries to comprehend the physical suffering of a dying old woman. Set in a timeless, spacele... continue
649.
The Immoralist by Andre Gide EN
Description:
First published in 1902 and immediately assailed for its themes of omnisexual abandon and perverse aestheticism, The Immoralist is the novel that launched André Gide’s reputation as one of France’s most audacious literary stylists, a groundbreaking work that opens the door onto a universe of unfettered impulse whose possibilities still seem exhilarating and shocking. Gide’s protagonist is the frail, scholarly Michel, who, shortly after his wedding, nearly dies of tuberculosis. He recovers only through the ministrations of his wife, Marceline, and his sudden, ruthless determination to live a li... continue
650.
Description:
Lost to the desiccated desert of 4th century Egypt, reclusive hermit Paphunce reflects on his sinful life. Determined to become closer to God, Paphunce resolves to bring God his childhood infatuation, the beautiful actress Thaïs. On his godly mission, Paphunce ventures out across the desperate landscape and dons a disguise to reach Thaïs. However, in his attempts to help her reach salvation, Paphunce may find himself eternally lost to damnation. As beautifully written as it is profoundly philosophical, ‘Thaïs’, a fictionalised retelling of the life of fabled Christian convert Saint Thaïs of Eg... continue