Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective
The Years (Ernaux book)
2008 book by Annie Ernaux From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Remove ads
The Years (French: Les Années) is a 2008 non-fiction book by Annie Ernaux. It has been described as a "hybrid" memoir, spanning the period of 1941 to 2006.[1][2][3] Ernaux's English publisher, Seven Stories Press, described it as an autobiography that is "at once subjective and impersonal, private and collective."[3]
.jpg)
Remove ads
Synopsis
In the book, Ernaux writes about herself in the third person (elle, or "she" in English) for the first time, providing a vivid look at French society just after the Second World War until the early 2000s.[4] It is the social story of a woman and of the evolving society she lived in. With this feature of book, Edmund White described it as a "collective autobiography", in his review for The New York Times.[3]
Remove ads
Reception
The Years was well received by French critics and is considered by many to be her magnum opus.[5]
It won the 2008 Françoise-Mauriac Prize of the Académie française, the 2008 Marguerite Duras Prize,[6] the 2008 French Language Prize, the 2009 Télégramme Readers Prize, and the 2016 Premio Strega Europeo Prize.[citation needed]
Translated by Alison L. Strayer, The Years won the 31st Annual French-American Foundation Translation Prize in the non-fiction category.[7] Alison L. Strayer's English translation was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2019.[8]
Remove ads
Stage adaptation
Summarize
Perspective
A Dutch stage adaptation written and directed by Eline Arbo, titled De jaren, premiered at the Het Nationale Theater in The Hague on 3 November 2022. It featured a multi-generational cast of five women who all played the central character. The actresses included Mariana Aparicio, Nettie Blanken, Tamar van den Dop, Hannah Hoekstra and June Yanez.[9] The production received rave reviews from critics.[10][11][12][13] The play was selected for the 2023 Nederlands Theatre Festival.[14] For her performance, Aparicio won the prestigious Theo d'Or in 2023.[15]
An English adaptation, also directed by Eline Arbo, started performances at London's Almeida Theatre on 27 July 2024, starring Deborah Findlay, Romola Garai, Gina McKee, Anjli Mohindra and Harmony Rose-Bremner.[16] A preview performance on 29 July 2024 drew strong reactions due to a graphic backstreet abortion scene featured halfway through the play. Some theatregoers, who were reportedly "mainly male", complained of feeling faint and requested medical assistance.[17] The play, which ran until 31 August 2024, was adapted into English by Stephanie Bain and featured several narrations of the book's passages whereas other passages were turned into dialogue.[18] After its sold-out run at the Almeida Theatre, the play transferred to the Harold Pinter Theatre in London's West End from 24 January 2025, continuing through 19 April 2025.[19][20] At the 2025 Laurence Olivier Awards, it received five nominations,[21] winning Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Garai and Best Director for Arbo.[22]
References
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Remove ads