Colette’s Chéri

I’m re-reading Chéri, one of the most well-loved of Colette’s later novels. I’m reading it in two books at the same time: a beautiful, leather-bound French version from Editions de Crémille 1968, with a hand-painted illustration of a very innocent-looking house, and also a bright pink dual language version. The dual language version is great; it’s useful in that I can understand all those words here and there that I usually just skim over because I’m too comfortable to get up and get the dictionary. It also gives great entertainment value in that I can scoff at the translation, especially all the modernisms: the thought of Colette writing “gotten” is absurd. Tut tut.

On the other hand, the book has a good introduction — it actually mentions Missy, rather than ignoring this inconvenient six-year relationship, as most introductions do. And it also illustrates a fascinating difference in em dashes: the French side has a space on either side of it — as I do with mine — but the em dash on the English side has no spaces—which I’m told is correct—but somehow find odd. It does look elegant, but I suppose I’m so used to seeing them with spaces that it looks wrong without them.

I’ve had a temporary, involuntary break from writing: I’m hoping that I’m germinating. The break was due largely to The Secret History by Donna Tartt. Fantastic, brilliant, phenomenal. I loved it. This unfortunately meant that I couldn’t disengage myself from it: it went with me everywhere around the house from room to room, clasped to my bosom like a baby. I shall have to re-impose my previous ban on any book unrelated to Colette or Anaïs Nin… Chéri is a lovely beginning.

Ça fait trop longtemps que je n’ecris pas! (enfin, quelques semaines….) C’est la faute d’un livre merveilleux de Donna Tartt, je ne supportais pas la possibilité de passer d’une piece a l’autre sans prendre le bouquin avec moi. Maintenant je retourne au régime: Non à tout livre qui ne parle pas soit de Colette ou d’Anaïs Nin! Je comence avec Chéri…