Much of the story was told through letters, most of which would randomly start with no introduction. I've been reviewing for over 5 years. Some of the little stories and flashbacks were interesting but this book was long and boring at times. I always go back to the last scene of the film, and it makes me shiver every time. She embarks on a search to trace anyone who might know what actually happened, a search made both more difficult and more interesting by her physical limitations (she’s wheelchair bound) and the devastation of post-war France. It was hard to keep track of all the different relationships a. I was unimpressed by this book. The characters were interesting and engaging. Of course he goes off to war and perishes in the trenches. However, a letter sent in 1919 to the fiancée of one of the dead soldiers leads her to believe otherwise.

It doesn't seem like a book I'm going to love, but at least it looks like I'll finish it this time. And the mystery of what happened to Manech and four other soldiers who were thrown into No-Man's Land by their own leaders keeps you reading on and on.
This is such a wonderful story of love and devotion, but don't worry, it never gets sappy. Amazing Japrisot, such story. In the beginning of the book Mathilde hears news that her fiance was given the death sentence along with four other men for self mutilation as a way to get out of the army in World War I. Can't believe I actually finsihed this book. How can you not admire her devotion to Manech? In a nutshell this book is about France and post WWI and young woman looking for her fiance who is delcared MIA. How could you not admire someone who accomplishes as much as she does despite being in a wheelchair? Each has been court-martialed for that offense and sentenced to death. Oh yes we have the occasional mini-series, but they are becoming a thing of the past, at least good ones are. I was unimpressed by this book. I LOVED this book. September 1st 1994 A new determination comes within her to find her lost fiance. As luck would have it, our old DVD player kept skipping since the DVD was a bit damaged, so I haven't seen the whole movie yet. In that time, there is only one book that I ever started that I did not finish. It was hard to keep track of all the different relationships and the feelings behind the relationships. The reader unravels the clues along with Mathilde as she receives more and more information about her fiance's mysterious death. Several times I wanted to give up but I kept thinking/hoping it was going to get better. I had to read it, then watch the movie (sublime, by the way - by Jean Pierre Jeunet), and then read it again in order to understand both book and movie. Oh my, explaining why I have rated this three stars is complicated, just as complicated as the book is. In a nutshell this book is about France and post WWI and young woman looking for her fiance who is delcared MIA. But, I was inspired to pick the book up again to figure out what I had missed in the movie. Tipped off by a letter from a dying soldier, the shrewd, sardonic, and wonderfully imaginative Mathilde scours the country for information about the men. This is a powerful novel which touches on how war can destroy the human psyche. The plot itself was interesting and had potential.

As she carries her search to its end, an elaborate web of deception and coincidence emerges, and Mathilde comes to an understanding of the horrors, and the acts of kindness, brought about by war. [s], 32 New Historical Fiction Novels Readers Are Raving About.

A Very Long Engagement is a book about A girl named Mathilde who is trying to find out what happened to her fiance Manech. Something seems fishy about his death so she begins to investigate. Out and out sobbed. I read this book during my last life-altering interval, and I sobbed through the last twenty pages . She would not rest until she got to the botto. Also the characters were confusing. Ostensibly, by the next day all are killed by German fire. And I loved the main character, Mathilde, more than just about any character in any book I've ever read. And I loved the main character, Mathilde, more than just about any character in any book I've ever read. She embarks on a search to trace anyone who might k. Perhaps this is better in the original French? Too bad a lot of his work has yet to be translated to English. There are so many different versions of what happened that Mathilde's investigation is constantly taking one step forward and two steps back. Little by little, over ten years, she learns odds and ends of details of what actually happened to him. See 1 question about A Very Long Engagement…, SOLVED. The premise is complex and horrific. I give it two stars for not being terrible but could have been about half the legnth. Educating.
A Very Long Engagement’s ambiguous ending frustrates its protagonist’s hope that things might return to normal after the war, but suggests that, though many of its … Instead of facing the firing squad, their sentence was to be sent over the top into No Mans' land to await their discovery by the Germans. I bought this book because I enjoyed the film. She also hears that a one or two of them might have lived. There were also too many characters to easily keep track of. Amazing Japrisot, such story. A story of WW I translated from the French.

Thrilling.