Valérie Zenatti is a writer, screenwriter and translator of Aharon Appelfeld. She has written for young people, notably “A bottle in the sea of Gaza” (L’École des Loisirs, 2005) translated into eighteen languages. More recently, at Éditions de l’Olivier, she published Jacob, Jacob (Prix du Livre Inter 2015) and In the beam of the living (Prix Essai France Télévisions 2019).
“It’s not because God doesn’t exist that we can do without him so easily. »
It was only recently that Mathilde became insomniac. Then she lost her sense of touch. There were other signs: leaflets found when his grandfather died, a video of Leonard Cohen in Jerusalem, the return of war to Europe. Mathilde is disoriented. She has become a sort of enigma to herself, like her era. Is this why she suddenly decides to take a plane to Israel? As if the answer to the questions she asks herself has been waiting for her there forever. From Tel Aviv to Capernaum, then to Jerusalem, his encounters with strangers – and a few ghosts – only deepen the mystery. Until, in a flash, the truth appeared to him. Taking History head on, Qui-vive is also the journey of a woman who seeks to reconcile her inner landscape with the world around her. With this multifaceted book, Valérie Zenatti vividly confirms a true romantic talent. (Presentation of Olivier editions)
