Hello sadness

Hello sadness is the first novel of Francoise Sagan, published in 1953.

History

Cecile spends the summer of her seventeen years in a villa of the Riviera with her father and two very interesting women.

His/her father, Raymond, are an attracting man who all the women whom it does not hesitate to allure like. Among these women, Elsa, with which Cécile gets along easily. Come the villa to spend the summer with her lover, it resembles many others that Cécile saw entering the life of her father and to leave it after little time: Elsa is young person and fashionable.

Cecile, a little naive, tries to appear adult and to attract men of the same age as her father. Its love life is without relief until arrived of Cyril at the villa. Raymond, Elsa and Cécile spend a quiet summer, until the moment when Anne arrives according to the invitation of the father of Cecile. Different from the others, Anne appreciates the culture, the formation and the intelligence. As of its arrival, a subtle combat starts to develop between the three women. Elsa, it, tries to keep the low relation between Raymond and it. It is likely to break because of Anne who does not seek any more the true love because she found it as a Raymond who is the most important person in the life of Cecile who does not want at all that her father sédentarise. She fears that she loses her freedom from which she profits much: she does not work with her duties of holidays, but spends her days to the beach.

This apprehension is justified: Anne takes in hand the very empty life of Cecile and even makes it work. Moreover, Anne is not too enthusiastic to look at Cécile falling in love with Cyril what irritates much Cécile. But little by little, Raymond moves away from Elsa and becomes more and more fascinated by the woman whom it finds in Anne. After some intense conversations, both decide to marry.

It is at this time that Cécile knows that she saw some enough: this intelligent woman disturbs all this life which seems so invaluable in its eyes: interesting men, fashionable women, much of recreations. Then, it succeeds in persuading her friend Cyril to simulate an adventure in love with Elsa which be party when it had heard the news of the marriage. Raymond, it, are irritated to see Elsa turning to a man younger than him and it is found soon in the arms of its old amante. When Anne surprises them (it was exactly what Cécile wanted), she sees all her life, all her dreams to break. Despaired it leaves the villa and dies in an car accident.

Initially, Cecile and her father are inconsolable, the girl realizes that it was partly its fault which this remarkable woman died. But after some time, the father and his daughter take again their low life, but they will never forget this extraordinary woman - and the feeling of which they made knowledge because of her death: sadness.

The author

Francoise Sagan, with the civilian Francoise Quoirez, had been born on June 21st, 1935. She died on September 24th, 2004 after having written many novels, plays and scenarios with success. She published Hello sadness , its first novel, in 1953, whereas she was only 18 years old.

Adaptation to the cinema

Hello sadness of Otto Preminger

Topicality

On average, 92% of the population read Hello sadness without being sad. Record for a book of this name.

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