A review by casskrug
Shame by Annie Ernaux

3.0

shame is another thread in the tapestry of themes than run through all of annie ernaux’s books, focusing in on a traumatic event in ernaux’s childhood and the ways in which it affected her life. in particular, she takes an in-depth look at her neighborhood and school as they were when she was 12 years old in 1952, processing her father’s violent outburst against her mother. we see how religion, education, and the small town she lived in influenced her upbringing. the observations and descriptions reminded me in some ways of her book exteriors - snapshots of the outside world.

even though the inciting event for this book is very personal and relationship-based, i found that on the whole this is a zoomed out look at ernaux’s environment rather than a deep dive into her family relationships. for me, ernaux shines the brightest when she’s digging into the personal. so, this wasn’t my favorite but i’m never gonna be mad about an annie ernaux book! the prose is sharp and sparse as always. i finished this in one day and feel like it adds another dimension to the annie ernaux cinematic universe, if you will.