The indolence of life in Tunis in the 1940s and 1950s, the decline after exile in France from 1961… Arlette, a very special girl from a young age, a runaway, whose father, a soldier, tired of looking for her , was to attach to a fig tree, will remain attached to a man, by a man all his life. The story of her life, a turbulent, unconventional life, is that of a French family from Tunisia, who experienced a strong break when they had to leave their native country, and undergo in France the trials of a descent into hell. . The welcome was very difficult, not very pleasant, as if they were not French. As a talented novelist, but also as a little girl attached to her grandmother, Olivia Elkaim tells in Fille de Tunis, published by Stock, a family story certainly, but also somewhere a story of Tunisia, a story of France.
With “Relizane’s tailor” (Stock, 2020), she went in search of the Algerian branch of her family, diving into the life of her grandparents, in the middle of the Algerian war. His grandfather Marcel, a tailor, will be at the center of his novel. The passion and talent are there, the story is wonderfully constructed, keeping the reader in suspense. Olivia Elkaim will continue in the same vein, but this time, to tell us about the Tunisian branch of her ancestors. His grandmother Arlette will provide him with an exceptional, colorful character. Indomitable daughter, magnificent woman, and special mother, she will exercise her charm as a wonderful wife in Tunis. Her husband, who was a driver at the Residence of France and witnessed strong moments experienced with the Resident Generals whom he drove, opened wide the doors to her for grand balls at the Residence. Of this carefree life, she will experience the full force of exile in Marseille, gambling addiction, drinking, debt… Even attachment to a second man sharing the same roof with him and his husband. She will marry him after the death of her husband and will wear him out with her drunken elopements. He then decides to tie her to the bed…
A destiny that is not exceptional, as Olivia will say to Leadersbut which is exceptional.
Patiently, the novel unfolds, the plot is constructed, the characters are depicted down to their moods and emotions, the places are described with precision, the flavors and smells are felt… Journalist by profession, Olivia Elkaim has nothing forgotten about the techniques of investigation, reporting and interviews, learned at the Journalist Training Center (CFJ) and practiced throughout a brilliant career. But she kept all this deep in her memory to let her talent as a novelist flourish through a gripping story and careful writing. The part of reality is difficult to distinguish from fiction. The whole thing is wonderful.
Not everything had gone well in the history of relations between Tunisia and France, says Olivia Elkaim, deploring that this story is little known in France. “There is still a story to face, she confides to Leaders. If we do not face this history, we French people will forever have a war of memory. When we cannot lean on the past, we cannot move forward.”
Daughter of Tunis
by Olivia Elkaim
Stock, 2023
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