The Vexations

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A marvelous Wall Street Journal , enthralling New York Times Book Review debut novel about love, family, genius, and the madness of art, circling the life of eccentric composer Erik Satie and La Belle poque Paris Erik Satie begins life with every possible advantage But after the dual blows of his mother s early death and his father s breakdown upend his childhood, Erik and his younger siblings Louise and Conrad are scattered Later, as an ambitious young composer, Erik flings himself into the Parisian art scene, aiming for greatness but achieving only notoriety As the years, then decades, pass, he alienates those in his circle as often as he inspires them, lashing out at friends and lovers like Claude Debussy and Suzanne Valadon Only Louise and Conrad are steadfast allies Together they strive to maintain their faith in their brother s talent and hold fast the badly frayed threads of family But in a journey that will take her from Normandy to Paris to Argentina, Louise is rocked by a severe loss that ultimately forces her into a reckoning with how Erik obsessed with his art and hungry for fame will never be the brother she s wished for.With her buoyant, vivid reimagination of an iconic artist s eventful life, Caitlin Horrocks has written a captivating and ceaselessly entertaining novel about the tenacious bonds of family and the costs of greatness, both to ourselves and to those we love. Best Download [ The Vexations ] author [ Caitlin Horrocks ] – kino-fada.fr On February 18, 2018, we attended the Detroit Symphony Orchestra s French Festival to hear Claude Debussy s orchestration of Erik Satie s Gymnop dies Nos.1 3 along with music by Dukas, Saint Saens, and Offenbach.I had not realized previously how much I loved French music I wanted to attend every one of the concerts The two Gymnopedies were the only music by Satie performed during the festival only because Debussy had orchestrated them The music Satie wrote before he was twenty two year On February 18, 2018, we attended the Detroit Symphony Orchestra s French Festival to hear Claude Debussy s orchestration of Erik Satie s Gymnop dies Nos.1 3 along with music by Dukas, Saint Saens, and Offenbach.I had not realized previously how much I loved French music I wanted to attend every one of the concerts The two ...Thanks to a Goodreads giveaway, I enjoyed an advance copy of THE VEXATIONS French composer and pianist Erik Satie lived from 1866 to 1925 and was part of a memorable era of artistic change in Paris Friends and acquaintances such as Claude Debussy, Picasso, Cocteau, Man Ray, and his one love, Suzanne Veladon endured his unpredictable and often fiery temperament while recognizing his exceptional talents Descriptions of...I read 115 pages of this novel and still didn t care about any of the characters I would return to the book each night before bed having forgotten what it was about I picked up another book on my list, read 15 pages and was hooke...The Vexations by Caitlin Horrocks is a fascinating novel that revolves around the life of Eric Satie, a French composer to be honest, I had never heard of Satie even though I consider myself a lover of music However, after reading this debut novel I can say that i have been given great insight into this remarkable artist The novel entwines the lives of Satie s brother Conrad and of his sister Louise it is sometimes humorous and sometimes heartbreaking, but always honest The book is well wri The Vexations by Caitlin Horrocks is a fascinating novel that revolves around the life of Eric Satie, a French composer to be honest, I had never heard of Satie even though I consider myself a lover of music However,...I knew the name Erik Satie, but nothing else about him and if I have heard his music, then it was without having any idea, and so I found this a very interesting historical fiction novel France, in the Belle Epoque, comes alive, a very dirty place filled with the haves and the have nots, and those striving to be composers, poets, artists, and the like The character I found most fascinating wasn t Satie actually and indeed why he was as he was, whatever mental issues he may have had which cau I knew the name Erik Satie, but nothing else about him and if I have heard his music, then it was without having any idea, and so I found this a very interesting historical fiction novel France, in the Belle Epoque, comes alive, a very dirty place filled with the haves and the have nots, and those striving to be composers, poets, artists, and the like The character I found most fascinating wasn t Satie actually and indeed why he was as he was, whatever mental issues he may have had which caused him to behave and live as he did, etc isn t really filled in the particulars are, but not the underlying causes , but instead Louise captured my attention most She is the middle of the Satie children, the only girl, who, like her siblings, has lost her mother, and her father has disappeared, and she is taken ...Book 4 finished for July 24in48 This is a very intimate novel about the life of Erik Satie and his sister, brother, and two friends who new him well The writing is beautiful, particularly in those chapters from Satie s perspective talking about touch or music, and Horrocks described the Montmartre Satie inhabited so well The chapters from his sister Louise s perspective are interesting they are the only ones told in 1st person I think I figured out why the author made that choice but I d Book 4 finished for July 24in48 This is a very intimate novel about the life of Erik Satie and his sister, brother, and two friends who new him well The writing is beautiful, particularly in those chapters from Satie s perspective talking about touch or music, and Horrocks described the Montmartre Satie inhabited so well The ch...I had no idea what this book was about when I checked it out, just liked the cover, shortly in I started googling, ruining the story for me since I did so much research It s amazing to me all that rests a...I loved it Really interesting story, very well written A wonderful piece of historical fictionI m totally under this book s spell The Vexations is as funny as it is beautiful It s about making art in the big city, but it s also about the absurdity of playing the role of a Great Artist It s about family and how deep those ties can cut, but it s also about the leeway we give our most ridiculous loved ones It s about Belle Epoque Paris, with all of its rowdy salons and ink stained studios, but it s also about how much it sucks to be full of ideas while nursing empty stomachs and pockets I m totally under this book s spell The Vexations is as funny as it is beautiful It s about making art in the big city, but it s also about the absurdity of playing the role of a Great Artist It s about family and how deep those ties can cut, but it s also about the leeway we give our most ridiculous loved ones It s about Belle Epoque Paris, with all of its rowdy salons and ink stained studios, but it s also about how much it sucks to be full of ideas while nursing empty stomachs and pockets Every...Strong historical romance centered around the eccentric composer Erik Satie and his family Beautiful characterization and period detail A few quibbles, like the inconsistent and unhistoric use of first names between adult men, and the need ...

The Vexations
  • 18 September 2018
  • Hardcover
  • 464 pages
  • 0316316911
  • Caitlin Horrocks
  • The Vexations