After reading The Ferry Man by British woman writer Claire mcfaul in August, I wrote a book review entitled The Ferry Man: A Boring Best-seller with Successful Marketing, which mercilessly criticized this boring novel with "similar pictures going round and round", and at that time, it also caused some debates. Some people thought it was obviously a good book in line with propaganda. Naturally, I keep my own opinions and respect others' opinions.

I recently read Nina George, a German woman writer (who is also a woman writer! ) the novel Little Paris Bookstore, suddenly found that the main idea of the novel is almost the same as The Ferry Man-The Ferry Man is a story on the way from a certain starting point (the scene of the heroine's death in an accident) to a certain ending point (the soul enters another world), and The Little Paris Bookstore is also from a certain starting point (the book boat on the Seine) to a certain ending point (Provence) In the current buzzwords, "Little Paris Bookstore" is worthy of my crazy call! (haha ~~)

Why is there such a dramatic difference? Move the small bench first, and listen to me to sort out the main plot of the book. A good story is worth spending time reading.

The bookstore referred to in Little Paris Bookstore is a modified book ship with a length of five meters and a width of four meters, which is euphemistically called "Water Literature Pharmacy". This book boat has been quietly moored on the banks of the Seine for 21 years. The owner of the book boat, Mr. Jean Perdue, is a bachelor in his fifties and a strange person in the eyes of outsiders. He rented a minimalist apartment and lived a minimalist life. A cup, a bowl and a chopsticks, a few clothes, a few pieces of furniture, simple tea and light rice, alone.

However, he is gifted in selling books. He knows who should read what books. He can understand the stories that happen to every customer, whether they are happy or painful, sad or melancholy, and he can find books to cure them properly. If a customer chooses a book that doesn't suit him, Mr. Perdue will resolutely not sell it.

Although Perdue's "special function" can cure others, it can never cure himself. He has been bitter about his lover Manon leaving without saying goodbye that summer more than 21 years ago. There is no remedy except that Sanari's Light of the South can comfort him.

Manon, a 21-year-old girl from Provence, is full of youth and vitality. She is neither delicate nor perfect, never plans, and always lives in the present. She met Perdue on the train and fell in love at first sight. At that time, Manon was engaged in Bonnyaud village in Provence, her hometown in the south, and her fiance Luke was running a wine estate in the country.

Perdue also knows that Manon has a fiance, and she will never leave Luke, because Luke can give her unconditional freedom. Nevertheless, Manon and Perdue fell in love passionately, and five years were full of joy, and sweet sunshine filled every room. It was not until the summer of 1992 that Manon suddenly left without saying goodbye and sent him a letter only two weeks after he left.

Perdue, who was angry and sad, thought it was Manon's usual trick to get tired of his old lover. In order to maintain his self-esteem, he refused to open the letter and threw it into the drawer of the dining table to seal it. After Manon's departure from Jeanpert, Du Xinru returned to life. He destroyed everything that could remind him of Manon, closed Manon's room permanently, did not eat any food that could arouse his desire, and no longer dated any woman ... For 21 years, most of his life was closed and dead.

until one day, a new neighbor came to Perdue's rented apartment-a woman Catherine who had just been abandoned by her husband. Catherine (a sculptor) has been struggling in a hopeless marriage. Her husband simply ignored her existence, but she expected the prodigal son to return, and finally her husband swept her out with a new lover.

The landlord suggested Perdue send a table to Catherine who had nothing. After much deliberation, he got up the courage to open Manon's room and move out of the table. Perhaps because of we are both unhappy -- to the sky's end, Perdue knew the pain of Catherine's abandonment, and he also sent several suitable books to heal Catherine. When Catherine found Manon's letter from the desk drawer and gave it to him, the pain that had been suppressed for 21 years seemed to reappear, but it was his turn to face the scar.

Perdue got up the courage to read the letter, only to find that he had made a stupid mistake. He completely misunderstood Manon. Manon left not because of boredom, but because she was seriously ill and was about to die. She has been waiting for him in Bonnyaud, hoping to see him before she dies. However, 21 years have passed ...

At that moment, Perdue made an important decision, bid farewell to Catherine, set sail, went south to Provence, followed Manon's footsteps and found himself lost. With him, there is also a 21-year-old new writer Max Jordan, who has been chased by fans everywhere. He became an instant hit because of his first novel, but he was miserable because of the lack of follow-up inspiration. He declared that he would not come back until he found inspiration, and then jumped on Perdue's book boat in a hurry.

Perdue and Jordan, although they are just temporary sailing partners, although life on the ship that set sail in a hurry always seems to be stretched, they get along as deeply as father and son. Perdue only told Jordan that he had gone to Provence to find his former lover, but did not tell Jordan that his lover Manon had long since died. He could never face the fact that Manon had left. Jordan also has family troubles, and his father never knows how to love him, nor can he see his achievements.

On the voyage, a new partner joined in-the omnipotent Italian Cougnaud. In order to find a woman who had a one-night love affair with him, Viviette wandered around and did various jobs. As soon as Cougnaud boarded the ship, he brought new changes. He was good at cooking. Perdue, who refused to eat for 21 years, was also captured by Cougnaud's food, and his frozen heart gradually melted in the recovery of taste.

The closer to Provence, the more anxious Perdue's heart becomes. He doesn't know how to tell his friends that Manon is dead. It sounds ridiculous to sail for so long to meet someone who is no longer there. However, Perdue is not alone. Cougnaud later admitted that he had found Vivienne long ago, but she was no longer the beautiful Vivienne, but the mother of a bloated and deformed child who was married to another woman. Besides, Vivienne doesn't know him anymore. However, he is still looking for it.

Perdue finally let his guard down and admitted that Manon had passed away. Unexpectedly, Jordan had long known that Manon was dead, and he accidentally turned over the obituary sandwiched in a book on the shelf ...

Three men with their own worries drifted along with the book boat. When they gradually exposed their true hearts to the sun, their lives changed completely. First of all, Cougnaud met his true love-Sanari, the author of Light in the South, whose real name is Sammy. Then Jordan fell in love with a handsome girl driving a tractor in Bonnyaud. She was the daughter of Manon and Luke. Jordan lives in a hostel in Bonnyaud, writes, helps the landlord and his wife, and pursues Victoria.

but Perdue is not good enough. The moment he arrived in Bonnyaud, he was deeply stimulated. He saw the white wine that the landlord put on the table was actually named after "Manon" with Manon's head on it. He knew that it was produced by Luke's family to commemorate Manon. He's not ready to face Luke, and he can't let go of his guilt for Manon. So, he handed the book boat to Cougnaud, and drove along the coastline by himself until the vehicle was scrapped and stopped in the beautiful coastal town of Sanari.

In Sanari, a holy healing place, Perdue worked in a bookstore in exchange for renting a house. He practices bowling and swimming every day. He believes that the sea is big enough to accommodate his inner sadness. He drained all his tears, and finally one day, he felt his body recover, and he began to believe that he could still be loved. He wrote to Catherine. Along the way, he didn't forget to send a postcard to Catherine, but this time it was different. He sent a formal invitation to Catherine. Without her, the sea lost a color.

Catherine came by invitation. It seems that they have known each other for a long time, and they soon fell in love in Sanali. It was not until the sunshine and wind in Sanari brought them enough courage and strength that they set off for Bonnyaud, and Perdue had to cross the last heart.

When he returned to Bonnyaud, Perdue first met Manon's husband Luke. He married another wife three years after Manon's death, and Manon's father gave them a vineyard as a gift. What kind of scene will the lover and husband meet? Perdue was ready to be beaten, but Luke only gave him a punch, not because Perdue was Manon's lover, but because he didn't come when he should have come.

Luke has never blamed Manon for loving two people. He thinks that even marriage can't completely bind a person's freedom. He respects Manon's choice and he can accept Manon's choice (is this French romance? ）。 He is just heartbroken that Manon is too hard on herself, and she has always felt deeply guilty about her actions. Without waiting for Perdue, she couldn't forgive herself.

The two most important men in Manon's life understood each other's inner pain. With the diary of Manon handed over to him by Luke, Pell Du Yi went to Manon cemetery on the mountain. Looking through Manon's diary, he remembered that he had feelings when Manon died. Never mind death, our meaning to each other will never change. Perdue smiled, his heart ached, and he was silent, still smiling in his heart.

"You are right, Manon. Everything still exists, our time is immortal and eternal, and life never stops. The departure of a loved one is only the threshold between an end and a new beginning. " Perdue finally put it down completely. Little Paris Bookstore has a happy ending.

Now that the story is over, let's talk about the advantages of Little Paris Bookstore over The Ferryman.

first of all, there are waves in the plot. Unlike "The Ferry Man", which seems to be a "monster upgrade" that is always at a climax, it is actually as light as water. The 411-odd pages of Little Paris Bookstore are closely linked with each other in terms of beginning, development, climax and ending, and the mood can also be ups and downs after reading it. The sailing course of the book boat also represents the psychological course experienced by the protagonist. From the death of a lover to the resurrection and embrace of a new life, the author vividly depicts Perdue's psychological struggle, which makes readers feel the same. It is said that the creation of Little Paris Bookstore originated from real events, and I believe it is true.

Secondly, the characters are full. Compared with the monotonous two-person world in The Ferry Man, the protagonist lineup of Little Paris Bookstore is obviously much stronger. They are attracted to each other because of similar experiences (both have been hurt emotionally, affection or love, but they always have scars in their hearts), and they have their own different characteristics, which are constantly changing with the development of the plot. Perdue, who has the wisdom of reading books, made a stupid mistake emotionally. Fortunately, he was finally able to redeem himself in the voyage of seeking forgiveness. The youthful Manon desperately loved two people, but failed to forgive herself in the end; Jordan, a newcomer to the literary world who was not recognized by his father and suffered from lack of inspiration, regained his confidence in the process of sailing, not only became more mature and responsible, but also gained new works and love ...

Third, the words were infectious. Since the title is Little Paris Bookstore, the author has naturally read many books, and the titles and related stories in the novel can prove her erudition. It is said that the writing is like a person. Reading Nina George's words, we can feel a gentle and delicate woman. Her writing is full of temperature, life, color and details, which can arouse almost all the senses. Whether portraying characters or depicting landscapes, she controls them just right. A group of lovely people and beautiful scenery all the way are touching and enviable to read.

The last point is inseparable from the profound theme of the novel. Through the main theme of feelings, we can read more. The biggest enemy in human life is not others, but oneself, which is a fear that should not exist in the heart. Perdue, Catherine, Jordan and Cougnaud, all of them have been bound by the past and others and lost themselves. If you want to let yourself go completely, you must first face it bravely.

"If you realize the past and don't remonstrate, those who know it can be pursued", the past should be let bygones be bygones, and living in the present is the most beautiful gesture. Hide the lost beauty in our hearts and start again with courage. Everything is contained in ourselves, and nothing will disappear.