A Man with No Title - by Xavier Le Clerc (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Mohand-Said Ait-Taleb is an enigma. Living in France but
ravaged by memories of the war in Algeria, he has withdrawn into his own world,
away from his wife and children. When his son Xavier discovers articles by
Albert Camus describing the appalling conditions his father grew up in, he
starts to piece together the story of his life.

Xavier retraces the steps of this dignified, illiterate and
strong-willed man: from Kabylia - where starving children, like Mohand-Said,
fought with dogs for scraps - to the metal factory in Normandy, where his
father would spend the rest of his days, consumed with providing for his
family. It is there that Xavier discovers his love of books. When he breaks
with conservative family traditions and confesses his attraction to men, Xavier
will find which doors slam closed and which will open.

A Man With No Title is a beautiful and moving tribute
to a father, to the immigrants condemned to undertake the hardest work for
meagre reward, and to the power of literature to transcend class.

Review Quotes

'The open-heartedness of A Man With No Title is one of its distinctive characteristics ... Le Clerc makes literature his own and adds his signature to the list of French prose stylists.' Brooklyn Rail

'A loving tribute both to a father and to the author's joy in language, and the only failing is that there isn't more of it.' The Guardian

'A Man With No Title is a powerful account of a marginalised community. As well as a poignant hymn to his father - "born dispossessed, without a title to land or French citizenship papers" - Le Clerc also pays tribute to France and the redemption it offered him through education. In finding his father, he discovers something of himself and the resilience they share.' The Observer

'A beautiful and achingly tender tribute to a father'
Leïla Slimani

'A beautifully
rendered, deeply felt tribute. Le Clerc achieves reconciliation, love and
respect for his long-suffering father.' Raja Shehadeh

'A magnificent book by Xavier Le Clerc, the
courage of his man without a title, Albert Camus, Kabylia, the war in Algeria,
industrial France, the life of immigrants, integration.' Anne Hidalgo

'A poignant story, a tribute to a father who
transmitted to him a saving rage.' L'Obs

'Here literature is not a settling of accounts,
nor a torrent of tears, it is a march forward towards understanding one's
history and oneself.' Le Figaro Littéraire

'Thank you for your story which does justice to your father,
to his lifelong journey marked by violence, colonisation, war and work.' Annie Ernaux

'We have fallen for this novel, which questions exile,
identity, class struggle. It's a beautiful novel, sensitive, magnificently
written. It has shaken us to our core.' France Inter

About the Author

William Rodarmor is a veteran French literary translator,
writer and editor. He has translated some forty-five books and screenplays in
genres ranging from literary fiction to espionage and fantasy, and has won many
translation prizes for his work.