The Country Will Bring Us No Peace

I really wanted to like this book, but it was kind of slow and boring.

So hard to critique a translated work especially when I don't speak French, live in France, etc. I did find this to be a worthwhile exploration of loss and grief. At times maybe a bit too extreme as far as the extent to which both characters (Simon and Marie) take their loss. However, I can also see that critique as my ignorance of how the French would cope in such a situation. Grief is such a personal thing and although there are similarities in people and cultures, variations must exist.As a reader, you can glean a good amount about characters by their actions, but I wanted Simard to relate more of the protagonists' past to help qualify their behavior and their solution. The story is not devoid of any past experience, but I didn't find it enough for me to fully accept the ending.Overall this is a very well-paced, intelligently written and honest look at grief and from two different points of view. Not easy to pull off, but Simard kept my interest by including a mysterious town with equally mysterious townspeople. As bleak as the story is, the mysteriousness works well as both a distraction and an accomplice to the overall theme. I caught myself putting post it tabs on some very profound statements and passages.Still looking for a good explanation for the meaning of the antenna?!?

Realmente 2,5

A one sitting read that left me sobbing. You can feel their agony, the pain of their grief, but it's also so beautiful. Well written and stunning. 10/10

I wish this book could be longer. I wanted to get to know the characters more. It’s one of those books you can see exactly who the writer is trying to picture. The story was beautifully written. It’s about love and loss and finding out what actually makes you happy.

It really felt like a 16 year old creative writing student wrote some of this. So many cliches, it was maddening.

Translation was pompous and too wordy to the point i couldn’t focus on the story. Storyline was inconsistent- not because of POV but it was lacking something. I didnt care for the characters.