My Fellow Skin - Softcover

Mortier, Erwin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1843430460 ISBN 13: 9781843430469

Publisher: The Harvill Press, 2003

Synopsis

As Anton grows up each tentative step on the path to adulthood brings knowledge, understanding and responsibility. Through the eyes of this impressionable and observant young boy, we witness the loss of innocence as he comes to terms with time's passing and inevitable death. He finds solace in his friendship with Willem and believes he has found a way to deal with his increasingly uneasy relationship with life. But this bond with Willem introduces a new emotional hurdle for Anton, an awakening love that gives him his own identity and envelops him like a skin. The subtlety with which Mortier describes a young man's experiences and feelings makes this an extraordinarily touching tale. But far from being a desolate novel, My Fellow Skin is a tender story of love, innocence and protection, and of painful loneliness when things fall apart.

About this title

Review

"This is a Bildungsroman which is related to much European literature from Proust and Mann onwards... peculiarly unforgettable." - A.S. Byatt, "Guardian"
"A sparkling novel with a thunderous effect [...] a Flemish song of truth and semblance." -"Vrij Nederland"
"Such an elegant pirouette sur place deserves high praise." -"de Volkskrant"
"Mortier again shows his mastery." -"Trouw""

"Whether it's exploring the effects of collaboration during the Nazi occupation, the absences of loved ones or the vulnerable nature of male intimacy, the literature Mortier creates greets its readers warmly, and has in turn been met with numerous esteemed awards in Europe. . . .With tenderness and skill, Mortier crafts assured novels brimming with quiet optimism despite their often somber subjects. To have them now translated and available in the United States all at once is a generous treat." -Shelf AwarenessonMarcel, My Fellow SkinandShutterspeed
"This is a Bildungsroman which is related to much European literature from Proust and Mann onwards... peculiarly unforgettable." - A.S. Byatt, Guardian
"A sparkling novel with a thunderous effect [...] a Flemish song of truth and semblance." -Vrij Nederland
"Such an elegant pirouette sur place deserves high praise." -de Volkskrant
"Mortier again shows his mastery." -Trouw"

From the Publisher

In this story about love as second skin, Mortier remains true to the perspective of his dazzling debut, Marcel, looking at the world through the eyes of an observant and impressionable young boy, Anton Calewijn

About this edition

• Publisher: The Harvill Press
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 1843430460
• ISBN 13: 9781843430469
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 208