The Meursault Investigation: A Novel

Brief Description: "This response to Camus's The Stranger is at once a love story and a political manifesto about post-colonial Algeria, Islam, and the irrelevance of Arab lives. He was the brother of "the Arab" killed by the infamous Meursault, the antihero of Camus's classic novel. Seventy years after that event, Harun, who has lived since childhood in the shadow of his sibling's memory, refuses to let him remain anonymous: he gives his brother a story and a name--Musa--and describes the events that led to Musa's casual murder on a dazzlingly sunny beach. Harun is an old man tormented by frustration. In a bar in Oran, night after night, he ruminates on his solitude, on his anger with men desperate for a god, and on his disarray when faced with a country that has so disappointed him. A stranger among his own people, he wants to be granted, finally, the right to die. The Stranger is of course central to Daoud's novel, in which he both endorses and criticizes one of the most famous novels in the world. A worthy complement to its great predecessor, The Mersault Investigation is not only a profound meditation on Arab identity and the disastrous effects of colonialism in Algeria, but also a stunning work of literature in its own right, told in a unique and affecting voice."--Review Quotes:"A tour-de-force reimagining of Camus's The Stranger, from the point of view of the mute Arab victims." --"The New Yorker" "[A] retelling of Albert Camus's classic "The Stranger" from an Algerian perspective...[this] debut novel reaped glowing international reviews, literary honors, and then, suddenly, demands for [Daoud's] public execution." --"New York Times" "Daoud has said that his novel is an homage to Albert Camus's "The Stranger," but it reads more like a rebuke... Where Camus's godless prose is coolly mathematical in its ratio of words to meaning, Daoud's work conducts waves of warmth. The sand and the sea and the sky and the stars, which, for Camus, seem to negate life rather than affirm it, are, for Daoud, vital witnesses and participants in his existence." --NewYorker.com "A superb novel... In the future, "The Stranger" and "The Meursault Investigation" will be read side by side." --"Le Monde des livres" "Very beautiful writing, original, located between suppressed anger and bursts of elation." --"Les Echos" "A breathtaking and effectively realized novel. "The Stranger" becomes a palindrome..." The Meursault Investigation "approaches the incredible, in that it reverses the perspective and point of view not without an emphatic ferociousness, all while playing with the prose and perspective of "The Stranger."" --"La Croix" "A remarkable homage to its model." --"Le Nouvel observateur" "An intense and surprising story." --"La Montagne"Biographical Note: Kamel Daoud is an Algerian journalist based in Oran, where he writes for the "Quotidien d Oran" the third largest French-language Algerian newspaper. He contributes a weekly column to "Le Point, "and his articles have appeared in "Liberation, Le Monde, Courrier International, "and are regularly reprinted around the world. A finalist for the Prix Goncourt, "The Meursault Investigation "won the Prix Francois Mauriac and the Prix des Cinq-Continents de la francophonie. International rights to the novel have been sold in twenty countries. A dramatic adaptation of "The Meursault Investigation "will be performed at the 2015 Festival d Avignon, and a feature film is slated for release in 2017."Marc Notes: Originally published in French as Meursault, contre-enquete by Editions Barzakh in Algeria in 2013, and by Actes Sud in France in 2014 -- Verso title page.; This response to Camus's The Stranger is at once a love story and a political manifesto about post-colonial Algeria, Islam, and the irrelevance of Arab lives. He was the brother of the Arab killed by the infamous Meursault, the antihero of Camus's classic novel. Seventy years after that event, Harun, who has lived since childhood in the shadow of his sibling's memory, refuses to let him remain anonymous: he gives his brother a story and a name--Musa--and describes the events that led to Musa's casual murder on a dazzlingly sunny beach. Harun is an old man tormented by frustration. In a bar in Oran, night after night, he ruminates on his solitude, on his anger with men desperate for a god, and on his disarray when faced with a country that has so disappointed him. A stranger among his own people, he wants to be granted, finally, the right to die. The Stranger is of course central to Daoud's novel, in which he both endorses and criticizes one of the most famous novels in the world. A worthy complement to its great predecessor, The Mersault Investigation is not only a profound meditation on Arab identity and the disastrous effects of colonialism in Algeria, but also a stunning work of literature in its own right, told in a unique and affecting voice.--; Provided by publisher."Review Quotes: "In Kamel Daoud's recent "The Meursault Investigation," a tour-de-force reimagining of Camus's "The Stranger," from the point of view of the mute Arab victims, the author seeks not to re-indict the colonizing French but to relate all the disappointments that the dream of free Algeria has produced for the 'natives, ' particularly their degradation by political Islam." "--The New Yorker"" " "[Kamel Daoud's] book, "The Meursault Investigation," is a retelling of Albert Camus's classic "The Stranger," from an Algerian perspective. Within its 160 pages, Mr. gives voice to the brother of the nameless Arab murder victim who is shot five times on a beach in Algiers by the antihero, Meursault." "--The New York Times"" " "Humor erupts in Meursault, contre-enquEte every time there is tragedy, and this recipe for the Algerian absurd gives Daoud's book its literary sting... For Daoud, the novel is above all an opportunity to engage with the legacy of Algerian independence, half a century old, and to ask what the country has made of its liberation. Daoud turns the novel into an aesthetic platform for his particular sense of the Algerian absurd: the tyranny of official religion and an asphyxiating national history." "--The Nation"Review Quotes:"Nothing...prepared me for [Daoud's] first novel, "The Meursault Investigation," a thrilling retelling of Albert Camus's 1942 classic, "The Stranger," from the perspective of the brother of the Arab killed by Meursault, Camus's antihero. The novel...not only breathes new life into "The Stranger"; it also offers a bracing critique of postcolonial Algeria... The premise is ingenious: that "The Stranger," about the murder of an unnamed Arab on an Algiers beach, was a true story..."Meursault" is less a critique of "The Stranger" than its postcolonial sequel." "--""The New York Times Magazine" "A tour-de-force reimagining of Camus's The Stranger, from the point of view of the mute Arab victims." --"The New Yorker" "[A] retelling of Albert Camus's classic "The Stranger" from an Algerian perspective...[this] debut novel reaped glowing international reviews, literary honors, and then, suddenly, demands for [Daoud's] public execution." --"New York Times" "Daoud has said that his novel is an homage to Albert Camus's "The Stranger," but it reads more like a rebuke... Where Camus's godless prose is coolly mathematical in its ratio of words to meaning, Daoud's work conducts waves of warmth. The sand and the sea and the sky and the stars, which, for Camus, seem to negate life rather than affirm it, are, for Daoud, vital witnesses and participants in his existence." --NewYorker.com "Camus's "The Stranger" is vividly reimagined in Daoud's intensely atmospheric novel...readers will be captivated." "--Publishers Weekly "(Starred review) "The nameless Arab victim of Albert Camus's "The Stranger" receives a biography and a name in this thoughtful, controversial rejoinder from the other side of the colonial question... Fiction with a strong moral edge, offering a Rashomon-like response to a classic novel." --"Kirkus Reviews" "A superb novel... In the future, "The Stranger" and "The Meursault Investigation" will be read side by side." --"Le Monde des livres" "Very beautiful writing, original, located between suppressed anger and bursts of elation." --"Les Echos" "A breathtaking and effectively realized novel. "The Stranger" becomes a palindrome..." The Meursault Investigation "approaches the incredible, in that it reverses the perspective and point of view not without an emphatic ferociousness, all while playing with the prose and perspective of "The Stranger."" --"La Croix" "A remarkable homage to its model." --"Le Nouvel observateur" "An intense and surprising story." --"La Montagne"Review Quotes: Nothing prepared me for [Daoud s] first novel, "The Meursault Investigation," a thrilling retelling of Albert Camus s 1942 classic, "The Stranger," from the perspective of the brother of the Arab killed by Meursault, Camus s antihero. The novel...not only breathes new life into"The Stranger"; it also offers a bracing critique of postcolonial Algeria... The premise is ingenious: that"The Stranger," about the murder of an unnamed Arab on an Algiers beach, was a true story "Meursault"is less a critique of"The Stranger"than its postcolonial sequel. " ""TheNew York Times Magazine" A tour-de-force reimagining of Camus s The Stranger, from the point of view of the mute Arab victims. "The New Yorker" [A] retelling of Albert Camus s classic "The Stranger" from an Algerian perspective...[this] debut novel reaped glowing international reviews, literary honors, and then, suddenly, demands for [Daoud s] public execution. "New York Times" Daoud has said that his novel is an homage to Albert Camus s "The Stranger," but it reads more like a rebuke... Where Camus s godless prose is coolly mathematical in its ratio of words to meaning, Daoud s work conducts waves of warmth. The sand and the sea and the sky and the stars, which, for Camus, seem to negate life rather than affirm it, are, for Daoud, vital witnesses and participants in his existence. NewYorker.com "Kamel Daoud's remarkable debut novel isn't simply a postcolonial reimagining but an allegory of his own country and time...[The Meursault Investigation] has the magnetism of its forebear, but its themes of voicelessness and vengeance feel utterly present-day."" Vogue" "Camus s"The Stranger"is vividly reimagined in Daoud s intensely atmospheric novel...readers will be captivated."" Publishers Weekly "(Starred review) "The nameless Arab victim of Albert Camus's"The Stranger"receives a biography and a name in thisthoughtful, controversial rejoinder from the other side of the colonial question... Fiction with a strong moral edge, offering a Rashomon-like response to a classic novel." "Kirkus Reviews" "[A] blazing, brilliantly conceived debut novel... An eye-opening, humbling read, splendid whether or not you know and love the original."" Library Journal" In "The Meursault Investigation," Kamel Daoud takes us to a territory that is clearly his own. I loved the unexpected depth to the restorative nature of the text, which enthralls the readers all the more, especially when they are familiar with Albert Camus s"The Stranger." It is a wonderful novel and I enjoyed reading it. Nuruddin Farah, award-winning author of"Hiding in Plain Sight" A superb novel In the future, "The Stranger" and "The Meursault Investigation" will be read side by side. "Le Monde des livres" Very beautiful writing, original, located between suppressed anger and bursts of elation. "Les Echos" A breathtaking and effectively realized novel. "The Stranger" becomes a palindrome " The Meursault Investigation "approaches the incredible, in that it reverses the perspective and point of view not without an emphatic ferociousness, all while playing with the prose and perspective of "The Stranger." "La Croix" A remarkable homage to its model. "Le Nouvel observateur" An intense and surprising story. "La Montagne""Publisher Marketing: A tour-de-force reimagining of Camus s"The Stranger," from the point of view of the mute Arab victims. " The New Yorker" He was the brother of the Arab killed by the infamous Meursault, the antihero of Camus s classic novel. Seventy years after that event, Harun, who has lived since childhood in the shadow of his sibling s memory, refuses to let him remain anonymous: he gives his brother a story and a name Musa and describes the events that led to Musa s casual murder on a dazzlingly sunny beach. In a bar in Oran, night after night, he ruminates on his solitude, on his broken heart, on his anger with men desperate for a god, and on his disarray when faced with a country that has so disappointed him. A stranger among his own people, he wants to be granted, finally, the right to die. "The Stranger "is of course central to Daoud s story, in which he both endorses and criticizes one of the most famous novels in the world. A worthy complement to its great predecessor, "The Meursault Investigation "is not only a profound meditation on Arab identity and the disastrous effects of colonialism in Algeria, but also a stunning work of literature in its own right, told in a unique and affecting voice." Review Citations:

Publishers Weekly 04/20/2015 (EAN 9781590517512, Paperback) - *Starred Review

Kirkus Reviews 05/15/2015 (EAN 9781590517512, Paperback)

Library Journal 06/01/2015 pg. 92 (EAN 9781590517512, Paperback) - *Starred Review

Contributor Bio:  Cullen, John John Cullen is Professor of Management Accounting at Sheffield Management School.