Book Review

"Inseparable" by Simone De Beauvoir

Pub Date : 9/7/2021

Thank you to Netgalley @netgalley and Harper Collins @harpercollins for this ARC.

Summary:

Two young girls, Andree and Sylvie, meet in school and quickly become best friends. They are so close that everyone says they are inseparable. Both girls are polar opposites of each other. Sylvie didn't believe in God, Andree was a devout Catholic. Sylvie wasn't close to her mother but Andree was close to hers. Each girl saw life differently and went different directions with their lives. However, both them remained close friends.

Review:
I gave this one two stars because I honestly did not care for the characters. I thought Andree was childish and annoying when it came to her views of the world and would have a tantrum because she was told to do something and then found a way to get out of it. I found Sylvie extremely clingy and not want to be anywhere else except with Andree.

The introduction written by Margaret Atwood stated that Simone De Beauvoir was a pioneer in the feminist movement. It does not take long to figure out that Sylvie is the picture of feminism and Andree is the picture of someone in a traditional female role. You can tell by the characters tone they know where they stand and what is expected of them. Andree knows that she must obey her mother because that is what good Catholic girls do. Sylvie decides to against the grain and finds the parties, the dinners and fancy apparel are not necessary to a fulfilling life as a woman.

I am all for feminism and equality but I felt the story was extremely preachy and looked down on women who chose to live a Godly life and/or desire traditional gender roles. Some of us like to be Andree's while others want to be the Sylvie's of the world. This book shows you both sides and lets us know that it is up to us to decide which side we'd like to be on and it shouldn't be forced upon us.

“Inseparable” is the posthumously published semi-autobiographical novel detailing the close relationship Simone de Beauvoir had with her childhood friend, “Zaza”, (here represented by “Andrée,”) who died in her early twenties. The story takes place from the last years of World War I through the 1920s.

The story revolves around Andrée’s conflict between her free and independent spirit and her strict Roman Catholic upbringing. Throughout her short life she battles with her feelings of guilt brought on by these conflicts. An underlying message appears to be that her overwhelming feelings of guilt led to her untimely death.

This novel appears to be an attempt by the author to come to terms with her grief over the loss of her childhood friend. The imagery and feelings expressed in the novel clearly conveys the author’s grief and desolation over the loss of her friend. Although the author’s description of the girls’ relationship was interesting, I particularly liked the way the author portrayed a snapshot in time of life in an upper middle class French family during the interwar years.

Inseparable is a fictionalized tale of Simone de Beauvoir and Zaza, her closest friend during childhood and as a young adult. While I haven’t read any of de Beauvoir’s other works, I can easily recognize the beauty with which she writes – atmospheric and conveying so many emotions and their complications in an understated manner. This makes the reader feel like they are experiencing the relationship Sylvie has with Andree, rather than being told what to see. Andree has in many ways been rendered fragile by her family, their religion and their place in society. She longs to be free to do as she wishes, to experience solitude, to not feel the contradiction of her faith, and so she is constantly both dynamic and unhappy. It seems in many ways, this is what draws Sylvie to her. Sylvie’s life is relatively free of drama and expectations and how can she not feel needed when her dearest friend provides the drama, emotions and excitement that do not exist for her in such a turbulent state? Is it not nice to feel needed, to be called upon to listen to another person’s woes? With Andree’s need to unload her woes and Sylvie’s need to feel wanted the pair form a bond, that while not always equal, compels them to seek each other out for completion over the years that they know each other. This story is short but powerful and atmospheric, and in some ways even though I was fascinated by the characters, I was also exhausted by them. Both Andree and Sylvia need so much, and following along with their friendship seems to be watching self-destruction in action.

A beautifully written short novel about two friends, one of which life was cut short. Published after her death, this novel by Simone de Beauvior is full of life and friendship. A quick read.

**This book is an arc and will be released on the 7th of September**
This book was wonderful, so wonderful I finished it in four day. I rated this book 4 stars out of 5. The reason for this was for the region part of it. The book took place in the 20’s and I really don’t agree with their religious beliefs. But all in all this book was so wonderful with an unexpected ending. I personally feel that even though Andree and Sylvie were best friends they were secrecy lovers as well; but due to religious view and family they had to hide it. I would definitely recommend this ebook because it’s a beautiful story, but also heart breaking. The author (s) did a wonderful job at this book. I love the letter at the end of the book as well and the deeper explanations at the end too. Great job.

Really enjoyed this story. It’s a beautiful recounting of the relationship between Simone and her dear childhood friend. Simone paints nostalgia in the countryside in a way that makes you want to be there, walking the grounds and sharing confidences as young girls would right alongside them. Loved it.

My first-time reading Simone de Beauvoir. Riveting. Could not consume each word soon enough, but not a skimming, speedy read; the story needed steady attentive consumption. Satisfyingly, de Beauvoir constructed a world in which we see one portion. It exists wholly before we enter and continues transformed but whole when the door closes upon us. Excellent!

“𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐦𝐞,” 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝.
𝐀𝐧𝐝𝐫é𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐠 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞.

Simone de Beauvoir’s never before published novel is much more autobiographical fiction, inspired by real events in the author’s own life. In fact, the cover of the book is that of Beauvoir and Zaza (her inseparable friend) whose friendship and grieving loss followed the author her entire life. Margaret Atwood has written the foreword, a poignant read itself not to be missed. Atwood admits to being terrified of such an imposing, brave figure as Beauvoir. Born in different times, under different standards, yet who can’t relate in some small measure to “rebellious women?” Sylvie Le Bon de Beauvoir, Simone’s adopted daughter and literary executor, writes the afterword and included are selected letters between Zaza and Simone. With the afterword, the reader is privy to further heartbreaking clarity. It makes the tale that has finally been published long after Simone’s death that much more meaningful- knowing the loss of her dearest friend was a story that never left her. That she made many attempts to explain such a deep wound to herself through putting it to paper is evidence enough of how desperately, passionately she loved Zaza. There is a special bond formed in girlhood between friends that molds the future self into being and it can be said that Simone’s shell was slowly cracked in the manner Zaza challenged her. The dedication itself reveals the unbearable guilt losing Zaza left Simone with. 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 is a tale inspired by Zaza and Simone’s friendship, about two girls coming of age in a time of strict constraints upon women. Who knew a feminist would be born in the aftermath of agonizing loss?

It is a love story, in essence, the first love that many girls feel for their best friend. A chosen sister, if you will, one that indulges and challenges you. Sylvie explains from the start of the novel that she wasn’t always a good little girl, like she is at the age of nine. She was, before war and religion corrected her, a little tyrant. On her first day of school she meets the new little girl named Andrée, one who was burned alive and lived to tell. She is forthright, and not schooled in the proper ways of the other respectful, more obedient students. Unlike Sylvie, Andrée’s mother expects her children to manage on their own, making to and from school without a chaperone, a shocking revelation indeed to Sylvie. It just isn’t done in France unless you’re an urchin. Naturally she’s won over, Andrée’s more like a confident adult and with a sort of snobbish insight that the new student’s family is highly regarded, Sylvie’s mother allows the bond to form.

Sylvie says nothing interesting has ever happened to her, but Andrée will become the event that opens her world and her heart,-that will burst with love and fidelity until the end of time. The vast differences between the households are stunning, where her friend’s brood runs around freely her own home is a quiet one. For the first time, Sylvie has someone she can speak openly with, sharing meaningful confidences. She learns fast that Andrée’s opinions are of a subversive nature owing to her being a child with lots of personality. She is allowed her thoughts and passions, until she is grown. It is as they come of age that clashes of expectations and desires cause no end of suffering and confusion, for no one more than Andrée, whose family is devoutly Catholic. When attachments made in childhood change, opposition arises and it is Sylvie who is meant to distract her dearest friend from forbidden things. There are traps in the lives of many women and despite all of Andrée’s freedoms, she is just as caged as the rest. She makes herself sick with torment, feeling hounded by thoughts of God, the lack of direction, the conflicts of the heart, expectations of family and society. Everything feels hopeless. Always, Sylvie is there, angered by the limits upon her friend, helpless in the face of Andrée’s impossible situation, her devastation. She is willing to do anything to help her. In Andrée, she has found a mind much like her own but her friend rushes headfirst into situations, making mistakes that will cost her. Entanglements that her parents will never abide.

As they become young women their friendship is no longer a welcome sight in Andrée’s mother’s eyes. Sylvie’s influence chafes against her own pious living. During a summer when Andrée’s mother is looking for suitors for her, having her elder daughter engaged, she invites Sylvie for a stay. Her friend never seems to have a moment to herself, she finds Andrée much changed. It is an authoritarian existence, difficult in the bloom of love. She is run down, and Sylvie wants nothing more than to help her. What will come of it all? What is the cost of a bit of happiness when the world is expecting a dutiful daughter?

It’s difficult to write a review, I don’t want to tell the story, but the theme is certainly constraints upon women. Even friendships can be seen as a defiance. This is a filtered world, especially for Andrée. Who would she have become if the heavy weights of others were lifted from her? If people would step back and stop trying to manage her? Endless disappointments, breaking the spirit , the shamefulness of ‘sins’, fighting temptation, resentment, adherence to the old ways, duty…. and the endless despair of failing to live up to impossible demands when it goes against your very nature. First and foremost, a story about friendship and love that not even death can diminish.

A heavy, beautiful, timeless read.

Publication Date: September 7th, 2021

Ecco

A never before published story written by the author in 1954, this is a fictionalized story based on the author’s friendship with Elisabeth ‘Zaza‘ Lacoin. They meet when they are young and Andrée, who in this story represents Zaza, is one of the students in the same class with Sylvie, who represents Simone. Their attachment and affection for each other was so obvious it earned them the nickname of the inseparables.

But their relationship struggles off and on, Sylvie is the one driving this friendship, she adores Andrée, practically turning herself inside out in the process. Andrée, on the other hand, who comes from a strongly knit, large family, a strongly Catholic family, struggles with the constructs of her faith against who would clearly oppose this relationship. It is also clear that her mother is consistently steering her away from this relationship.

With an introduction written by Margaret Atwood, and a dedication by the author that begins:’If I have tears in my eyes tonight, is it because you have died, or rather because I’m the one who is still alive?’ this is a story of the loss of a beloved friend, as well as the heartbreak of a love that required denial in order to be preserved.


Pub Date: 07 Sep 2021

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Ecco

This is a French novel written in 1954 by Simone de Beauvoir, just recently translated and to be released on September 7 …..35 yrs after the author’s death.
Beautifully written, this tells the story of an intense friendship that starts when Simone and Zaza
(Andree in the book) are 9 and they meet at school.
Follows their friendship until one of them dies at age 20 due to encephalitis (you won’t believe the reason why this occurred) tragic and unnecessary.
Anyway.. a beautifully written short novel.. topics: female friendship, oppression of women.
The cover made me interested in the book!

Thank you to Netgalley and Ecco for the ARC!

Couldn't put it down. A good read on so many different levels. Characters came to life on the page but in a slow awakening kind of way which led to slow absorption into the story line. It might feel a bit slow at first but pretty soon you are so into the story you forget about the short period of struggle it took to get there. Stick with this read, its worth it.

This book is a slightly fictionalized novella about two girls growing up around WWI. Some reviews call the relationship "passionate" and it is, but not in a sexual way. It's a lovely roman a clef that wonderfully depicts the child's world as she perceived it at various ages. Her experience of the Great War, for example, is largely seen through her father's change of work clothes, the family's moving to the country for a period, and changes in the family"s economic status. Highly recommended.

“Inseparable” .....[a never before published novel]...at 208 pages....was a story about an intense friendship — between Sylvie and Andree —as intoxicating [one sitting read]....as the enmeshed friendship between Lila and Elena in “The Neapolitan Novels”, by Elena Ferrante. ( only shorter).

Being as short as it is ....I hesitate to share specific content details....
Most important thing to say:
This book is gorgeous right from the title. The writing is achingly beautiful. It’s bruised and breathtaking— a powerful story of love and loss....of a passionate friendship.
Autobiographical in nature—written in 1954, “Inseparable” was inspired by an inseparable friendship—between Simone de Beauvoir and her friend Elisabeth ‘Zara’ Lacoin. Zara died of encephalitis at the age of twenty-one.

The storytelling, written in first person, is seen through the eyes of Sylvie (who was Simone de Beauvoir). It’s Sylvie who recounts events - their friendship - coming of age experiences - between she and her Andree Gallard ( who in real life was Elisabeth Lacoin, Simone’s closest friend).

Le Bon-de Beauvoir, Simone’s literary executor— is planning on releasing more unpublished fiction novels in the coming years.
Before Simone died she told Le Bon “you’ll do as you think right”.... in reference to publishing her unread work.
So, “Inseparable”, is just the first of other unpublished novels to follow.

Sylvie and Andree first meet as young girls - nine years of age. Andree was the ‘new’ girl in class (having been homeschooled for the entire year before due to needing to recover from an accident). Sylvie was often ranked top student in her academics — Andree was brilliant as well....but she just wasn’t attached to her results. Andree’s aloofness and independence enchanted Sylvie.

Their friendship grows. We learn of the different philosophies in which each were raised—meet the mothers- siblings - other friends - boyfriends - etc.

Sylvie’s and Andree struggled against conventional ideas of what a woman should be in the early 20th century (obedient, devout, chaste, arrange marriages within the same circles, idealogical, religious, social, and financial status).
We are taken on a journey of conflicts......the conflicts of conformity....
tragedy, deadly rules, love separations, spiritual brokenness, and repression. Andree could see right through they hypocrisy, the lies of life, the egotism of moralism....(of the elite social circle).....
Andree suffered quietly—(a girl that was never left alone in her big family with many siblings), but from internal isolation, from existential solitude, and from being her own torturer...tearing herself apart.

This is a story that gets consumed in one or two luminous, raw, emotional, and intellectually stimulating binges.

Introduction by Margaret Atwood.

A couple of excerpts:

“If I have tears in my eyes tonight, is it because you have died, or rather because I’m the one who is still alive?
I should dedicate the story to you: but I know that you are nowhere now, and that I am speaking to you here through literary artfulness. Besides, this is not truly your story but simply a story inspired by us. You were not Andree and I am not the Sylvie who speaks my name”.

“I had often envied Andree’s independence; suddenly, she seemed a lot less free than I was. Behind her, she had this past; around
her, this large house, this enormous family: a prison, whose exits were carefully guarded”.


Thank you Ecco publishing, Netgalley, to the beloved Simone de Beauvoir ( 1908 to 1986) ....French writer, intellectual, existentialist, philosopher, political activist, feminist, social theorist.
Beauvoir wrote novels, essays, biographies, autobiographies, and monographs.

*I own a few Beauvoir books that I’ve been meaning to read for years —
looking all-the-MORE-forward to reading them now.
Love this type of intimate writing.