My reading notes are remarkably critical for this Prix Goncourt-winning novel by Nicolas Mathieu (1978). Set in the French Grand Est region, between Luxembourg and Metz, And Their Children After Them is a portrayal of life in the French countryside during the 1990s. This theme recurs frequently in French art, from Émile Zola’s Germinal to this year’s box office hit L’amour ouf. Édouard Louis (The End of Eddy) was the first to introduce me to the concept of a ‘discarded’ society defined by poverty, pessimism, and pride.

Unfortunately, Mathieu does not reach that level; his ‘social’ novel drowns in his own ambitions. The author’s choice to write from the perspective of adolescents is not coherently executed: language is sometimes very slick or contrived, then suddenly strangely formal. (I fear that the Dutch translator might be partly responsible.) What’s worse, he tends to tell rather than show, leaving little room for the reader’s own interpretation. This style seems to be appreciated in French literature, however, given other praised novels such as The Great Swindle by Pierre Lemaitre and Vernon Subutex by Virginie Despentes. (If you enjoy those novels, please disregard my review and make sure to read this one as well.)

Towards the end, there are a few highlights. I particularly appreciated the integration of the 1998 FIFA World Cup (famous for France’s ‘black, blanc, beur’ team) into the story, and the section on monthly income and expenses was also engaging. With all this in mind, I hope the film adaptation by Ludovic and Zoran Boukherma, released last week, will be more successful.