Author and performer of six albums, a musical tale and a collection of short stories, Agnès Bihl signed her first novel entitled La vie rêvée des autres, published by Don Quixote in March 2015.
In Praise of Life
The whole book is an ode to life, in its good and bad sides. Each chapter is devoted to a character, but all this little world revolves around a single person: Madeleine, known as Mado. Over several decades, it is her life and that of her loved ones, family and friends, that Agnès Bihl tells us with humor and sensitivity. Between birth and death, loving, friendship, family relationships, work and the construction of a life, it is the beauty of these moments that is highlighted to demonstrate to the reader how precious every second is. There is no small pleasure and the author never ceases to repeat it to us through many images, each more touching than the last. To each his favorite sin from time to time, and that of Just Focus, in this month of August, is indeed this novel bathed in sunshine and spirit!
The Great Escape
At almost 80 years old at the beginning of the novel, Mado is the personification of the thirst for life. In order for her to benefit from constant care, her granddaughters, Delphine and Magali, decide to place her in a retirement home. In this "gagatorium", Mado can no longer live, just wait for death. Her two old but dashing friends Ferdinand and Jacky then implement a plan to make her escape and thus escape their boredom. But the need for escape is timeless ! Entangled in a dreary and bland daily life in which she fades every day a little more, belittled by an alcoholic companion and devoured by the desire to have a child, Delphine also needs a better elsewhere. As for Magali, she continues relations without a future while waiting for her rich lover to finally deign to separate from his too cumbersome wife. The dream life of others is this distorted vision that makes everyone believe that everyone is happy, except him, a theme that can be found in particular in its title C'est encore loin l'amour? from his album Rêve Général(e). This is a beautiful lesson that is given to the reader: have confidence in oneself, in the future and catch happiness at the slightest opportunity.
A committed novel
A passionate woman, Agnès Bihl tackles many difficult subjects without ever letting go of her bite and her contagious good humor. Handling with grace, subtlety and a hint of malice the words of the French language, she denounces the living conditions in retirement homes. Far from lynching all health care workers, it is a precise and justified criticism that she brings by never forgetting the humanity behind the abuse. Fatoumata, the caregiver who takes care of Mado, is one of the most endearing characters in the whole story. While talking to us about racism, deportation, domestic violence or forced marriage, among so many hard and serious subjects that the author tackles with accuracy, she never ceases to make us laugh and smile. The dream life of others is a novel full of emotions, like its characters.
Those who have already let themselves be lulled by the sweet voice of Agnès Bihl will be delighted to discover in this novel some sentences taken from her songs, in a context always fair and poignant. The dream life of others is one of those rare books without any false note that one rests with a smile on our lips and tears in our eyes with the eagerness to savor it again.
Good news while looking forward to her next novel: Agnès Bihl announced this week to return to the stage in Paris in a still unknown place on September 28, 29, 30 and October 1, 2017 to present new songs!
