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epictetsocrate's review against another edition
3.0
Fiecare din cele două texte părea indiscutabil… Numai că duceau la concluzii contrarii. După legea de stat, condamnatul Deşire Johnson acţiona cu drepturi depline invocând articolul 47 din codul de aplicare a pedepselor, care-i permitea să fumeze o ultimă ţigară înainte de execuţie. La rândul său, domnul Quam Lao Ching, directorul unităţii penitenciare, aplica riguros alineatul 176 liT. B din regulamentul interior interzicându-i să aprindă această ţigară. Adăugat cu un an mai înainte, la presiunea asociaţiilor de apărare a sănătăţii publice, acest apendice interzicea categoric consumul de tutun în incinta închisorii. Evident, ideea de a apăra sănătatea unui condamnat la moarte putea să te lase perplex, dacă nu cumva vedeai în asta un rafinament al cruzimii; dar o astfel de măsură, benefică pentru cei mai mulţi, nu accepta nicio excepţie. Din alt punct de vedere, articolul 47, deşi căzut în desuetudine, îl autoriza în mod incontestabil pe prizonier să tragă cele câteva fumuri prin care se risipea în aer ultima-i dorinţă.
Aparent indiferent la soarta ce-l aştepta, Deşire Johnson arbora un aer încăpăţânat, în anticamera sălii de execuţie, un dialog al surzilor se purta între condamnatul la moarte, un negru masiv, adept al mişcării religioase Rastafari, foarte calm sub codiţele împletite, şi administratorul stabilimentului, un vietnamez licenţiat în drept, recent numit la conducerea acestei închisori ultramoderne pentru a asigura buna desfăşurare a vreo douăsprezece execuţii capitale pe an. Trupul mărunt al asiaticului părea contractat de o vie agitaţie interioară. Dorinţa de a-şi îndeplini datoria fără a comite nicio greşeală, teama de a nu încălca regulamentul, obligaţia de a lua o decizie se traduceau prin repetarea aceluiaşi ordin, rostit cu o voce mecanică ce-i trăda lipsa de siguranţă:
― Vă cer, domnule Johnson, să formulaţi o ultimă dorinţă compatibilă cu regulamentul interior al acestei închisori.
Impasibil în uniforma sa portocalie fluorescentă, cu încheieturile strânse în cătuşe, Deşire Johnson nu avea nimic provocator, nici măcar insolent. Afişa mai degrabă acea inconştienţă care-i derutase pe juraţi în timpul procesului său ― când afirma că nu-l înjunghiase şi nici nu-l jefuise pe acel poliţist de patruzeci şi trei de ani, pe o străduţă din apropierea locuinţei lui. Sigur pe el, cu privirea sinceră şi capul sus, se crezuse obligat să precizeze: „Mă mai întâlneam cu el şi, drept să spun, era un rasist împuţit. De-aş fi vrut vreodată să-i fac felul cuiva, sigur aş fi ales pe unul de teapa lui!” în lumina indiciilor concordante şi prea numeroase, această declaraţie ambiguă sunase ca o mărturisire; dar era ceva cavaleresc în cuvintele lui, care atrăsese simpatia publicului, mai ales când Deşire adăugase: „Nu-mi cereţi să-l jelesc pe tipul ăsta care hărţuia puştii în loc să-i ajute. Eu n-am făcut în viaţa mea rău unui copil!”
Aparent indiferent la soarta ce-l aştepta, Deşire Johnson arbora un aer încăpăţânat, în anticamera sălii de execuţie, un dialog al surzilor se purta între condamnatul la moarte, un negru masiv, adept al mişcării religioase Rastafari, foarte calm sub codiţele împletite, şi administratorul stabilimentului, un vietnamez licenţiat în drept, recent numit la conducerea acestei închisori ultramoderne pentru a asigura buna desfăşurare a vreo douăsprezece execuţii capitale pe an. Trupul mărunt al asiaticului părea contractat de o vie agitaţie interioară. Dorinţa de a-şi îndeplini datoria fără a comite nicio greşeală, teama de a nu încălca regulamentul, obligaţia de a lua o decizie se traduceau prin repetarea aceluiaşi ordin, rostit cu o voce mecanică ce-i trăda lipsa de siguranţă:
― Vă cer, domnule Johnson, să formulaţi o ultimă dorinţă compatibilă cu regulamentul interior al acestei închisori.
Impasibil în uniforma sa portocalie fluorescentă, cu încheieturile strânse în cătuşe, Deşire Johnson nu avea nimic provocator, nici măcar insolent. Afişa mai degrabă acea inconştienţă care-i derutase pe juraţi în timpul procesului său ― când afirma că nu-l înjunghiase şi nici nu-l jefuise pe acel poliţist de patruzeci şi trei de ani, pe o străduţă din apropierea locuinţei lui. Sigur pe el, cu privirea sinceră şi capul sus, se crezuse obligat să precizeze: „Mă mai întâlneam cu el şi, drept să spun, era un rasist împuţit. De-aş fi vrut vreodată să-i fac felul cuiva, sigur aş fi ales pe unul de teapa lui!” în lumina indiciilor concordante şi prea numeroase, această declaraţie ambiguă sunase ca o mărturisire; dar era ceva cavaleresc în cuvintele lui, care atrăsese simpatia publicului, mai ales când Deşire adăugase: „Nu-mi cereţi să-l jelesc pe tipul ăsta care hărţuia puştii în loc să-i ajute. Eu n-am făcut în viaţa mea rău unui copil!”
tajana_a's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
toastx2's review against another edition
4.0
Caution: There are spoilers to a certain degree in this post.
sigh.. i really enjoyed this book. no review to be found here.. just rambling about the plot line and how awesome it was.
This book was originally written by French author Benot Duteurtre. Translated to English some time in the last couple years by Charlotte Mandell.
In the not to distant future, the world is not too different than it is now. People still work their jobs, there is no massive shift in the polar ice caps causing destruction. The human race is not nearing extinction, nor is it being harassed by aliens. Now you may be saying to yourself “Wait a second.. Jason.. what are you reading? you always have something a little bit bizarre in hand. and this is sounding a little tame.” Well, this is no exception.
In Powells books one day, Jenn picked up a bright pink book with a thick laminate cover. it was soft and a little unnerving in hand, somehow, too smooth to the touch, slightly velvet in that overproduced plastic sheeting kind of way. The binding on the book read “The Little Girl and the Cigarette”. The front and back covers are basic in structure showing the typical bar code, but also the above image. Jenn bought it and read me the synopsis. It rapidly became a “must read” and was catapulted to the top of my reading list.
The book opens in a world that is far too PC, too careful, too “nice”. People accused of a crime are put into a common court system which is televised and broadcast to the public. Generally, the public has formulated their own opinions a long time before the hearings begin, due to mass media saturation. Not too much difference from today right?
Slight spoilers follow, but i attempt to be caeful with presentation..
Plot line one: The author is a bit heavy handed at times, as in the case of the first main character introduced, Desire (Desir’ee) Johnson. Desire is aptly named, though seemingly mispronounced in it’s use as a name instead of a feeling/want. Desire is in prison for a murder he claims he did not commit. He is in prison, not because there was evidence that he killed a police officer, but instead, because he stated in court that if he was to kill a man, he would want it to be a bastard such as the one he was accused of killing. This was enough for the court. Desire is now rotting in prison and awaiting his own execution.
Desire (not the name) is exactly what saves him from death. On the day of execution, his final request is to have one final cigarette. The difficulty is that there is a general ban on smoking in all public buildings, including the prison. Will his last wish be fulfilled as the antiquated law books advise it should? Should the law upholding the rights of all the other citizens in the building be upheld instead, and his last cigarette be denied in defense of the lungs that might be affected?
This is an obvious conundrum for anyone trying to climb the career ladder. They don’t want the wrong decision hanging over their head. It would haunt one into unemployment.
~~
Queue plot line two: A man is indifferent to children. They stay out of his way, and he is generally happy with that. Our culture has come full swing to the position where children are a blessing. They are pure and clean and can do nothing wrong. Our secondary protagonist works for the city, and in the main city hall offices, he spends every day tortured.
The mayor of the city has performed cutbacks that laid a great deal of people off. in order to offset the stigma associated with layoffs and cutbacks, he has converted all of the newly opened space in the governmental buildings. The newly freed space becomes a full time daycare facility for anyone who needs it. Children run rampant across the building, and people are advised not to disturb them from their processes. anyone who continually causes issues or bitches gets flagged as a “hater of children” and people treat them differently.
our protagonist is a smoker. the general smoking ban has extended itself into the private sector, causing individuals to be unable to smoke in their own homes. he starts feeling a rebellious urge.
taking 6 months, he slowly creates a smoking area in a disused bathroom in his office building, someplace he can creep away to and not be caught by any of the building wide sensors, checking for elements that might harm others, especially the children.
One day he gets caught by a young girl while smoking. His butt goes out the window, he yells at the girl. In retaliation, she tells the world that he was lewd toward her in the bathroom. As a smoker, a known “hater of Children”, and an adult male, he it put in jail nearly instantly.
They ask, why would a child lie about something like that and the answer is, they would not. Everyone convicted of Crimes Against Children always state they are innocent.. these two factors combined make him a losing case, fucked by the system and officially ruined for life.
oh yeah, and a woman was hit by his cigarette butt and is suing.
not much here is not described in the first two chapters or the back of the book, so dont feel like reading this should deter you from picking up the book anytime soon. it doesnt spoil more than a few points.
--
xpost RawBlurb.com
sigh.. i really enjoyed this book. no review to be found here.. just rambling about the plot line and how awesome it was.
This book was originally written by French author Benot Duteurtre. Translated to English some time in the last couple years by Charlotte Mandell.
In the not to distant future, the world is not too different than it is now. People still work their jobs, there is no massive shift in the polar ice caps causing destruction. The human race is not nearing extinction, nor is it being harassed by aliens. Now you may be saying to yourself “Wait a second.. Jason.. what are you reading? you always have something a little bit bizarre in hand. and this is sounding a little tame.” Well, this is no exception.
In Powells books one day, Jenn picked up a bright pink book with a thick laminate cover. it was soft and a little unnerving in hand, somehow, too smooth to the touch, slightly velvet in that overproduced plastic sheeting kind of way. The binding on the book read “The Little Girl and the Cigarette”. The front and back covers are basic in structure showing the typical bar code, but also the above image. Jenn bought it and read me the synopsis. It rapidly became a “must read” and was catapulted to the top of my reading list.
The book opens in a world that is far too PC, too careful, too “nice”. People accused of a crime are put into a common court system which is televised and broadcast to the public. Generally, the public has formulated their own opinions a long time before the hearings begin, due to mass media saturation. Not too much difference from today right?
Slight spoilers follow, but i attempt to be caeful with presentation..
Plot line one: The author is a bit heavy handed at times, as in the case of the first main character introduced, Desire (Desir’ee) Johnson. Desire is aptly named, though seemingly mispronounced in it’s use as a name instead of a feeling/want. Desire is in prison for a murder he claims he did not commit. He is in prison, not because there was evidence that he killed a police officer, but instead, because he stated in court that if he was to kill a man, he would want it to be a bastard such as the one he was accused of killing. This was enough for the court. Desire is now rotting in prison and awaiting his own execution.
Desire (not the name) is exactly what saves him from death. On the day of execution, his final request is to have one final cigarette. The difficulty is that there is a general ban on smoking in all public buildings, including the prison. Will his last wish be fulfilled as the antiquated law books advise it should? Should the law upholding the rights of all the other citizens in the building be upheld instead, and his last cigarette be denied in defense of the lungs that might be affected?
This is an obvious conundrum for anyone trying to climb the career ladder. They don’t want the wrong decision hanging over their head. It would haunt one into unemployment.
~~
Queue plot line two: A man is indifferent to children. They stay out of his way, and he is generally happy with that. Our culture has come full swing to the position where children are a blessing. They are pure and clean and can do nothing wrong. Our secondary protagonist works for the city, and in the main city hall offices, he spends every day tortured.
The mayor of the city has performed cutbacks that laid a great deal of people off. in order to offset the stigma associated with layoffs and cutbacks, he has converted all of the newly opened space in the governmental buildings. The newly freed space becomes a full time daycare facility for anyone who needs it. Children run rampant across the building, and people are advised not to disturb them from their processes. anyone who continually causes issues or bitches gets flagged as a “hater of children” and people treat them differently.
our protagonist is a smoker. the general smoking ban has extended itself into the private sector, causing individuals to be unable to smoke in their own homes. he starts feeling a rebellious urge.
taking 6 months, he slowly creates a smoking area in a disused bathroom in his office building, someplace he can creep away to and not be caught by any of the building wide sensors, checking for elements that might harm others, especially the children.
One day he gets caught by a young girl while smoking. His butt goes out the window, he yells at the girl. In retaliation, she tells the world that he was lewd toward her in the bathroom. As a smoker, a known “hater of Children”, and an adult male, he it put in jail nearly instantly.
They ask, why would a child lie about something like that and the answer is, they would not. Everyone convicted of Crimes Against Children always state they are innocent.. these two factors combined make him a losing case, fucked by the system and officially ruined for life.
oh yeah, and a woman was hit by his cigarette butt and is suing.
not much here is not described in the first two chapters or the back of the book, so dont feel like reading this should deter you from picking up the book anytime soon. it doesnt spoil more than a few points.
--
xpost RawBlurb.com
skttrbrn's review against another edition
3.0
Frankly, I'm surprised that either the translator or the author have won their respective awards - the storytelling is rather jaunty and the language is handled without a great deal of finesse. The story itself however is an intriguing social/utopian satire, with humourous moments and a certain poignancy. The content and style remind me of Camus' The Stranger. I hold empathy for the protagonist, though many may find his personal philosophy to be somewhat objectionable. The shift from first to third-person perspective towards the end felt awkward, and the story's finale is a jaw-dropping, horribly uncomfortable cliffhanger.
alirowan's review against another edition
I expected a lot from this book, based on the quotes on its cover, but I felt that it fell a bit flat. It wasn't as biting a satire as I expected, and lacked much of the humour you'd expect, though I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt and assuming a fair amount of wit was lost in the translation. That aside, the pace of the ending completely threw me off. With the first 90% of the book focused on a couple key events, the last 10% decided to sprint for the finish line, introducing arguably the most interesting part of the book in the last 20 pages. To say the ending felt rushed would be a bit of an understatement.
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