Hélène Gestern; trans. Emily Boyce and Ros Schwartz
The People in the Photo by Hélène Gestern, translated from the French by Emily Boyce and Ros Schwartz, unfolds in a series of letters, texts, and emails between Hélène, a French archivist; and Stéphane, a Swiss biologist living in England.
Hélène discovers a photograph of her mother with two men while sorting through her father’s papers after his death. Having virtually no knowledge of her mother who died when Hélène was too young to remember her, she decides to post the photograph in the paper asking if anyone can identify either of the men. She receives a response from Stéphane who informs her that one of the men is his father; the other is a close family friend. The two begin corresponding. They unearth more photos, snippets of memories, postcards, and letters until they eventually piece together long held secrets about their parents’ lives and loves.
In this award-winning novel, Hélène Gestern captures the poignancy of lost love, heartache, and egregious mistakes made with the best of intentions to protect loved ones. The poignancy is heightened with descriptions of photos that intermittently interrupt the correspondence. Hélène describes each photo in intricate detail as she searches for answers behind a sideways glance, a relaxed pose, the position of a hand, a forced smile. Frozen in time, the characters initially conceal their secrets. But as she and Stéphane piece together their parents’ lives and tragic circumstances, they breathe life into the characters. The subtle gestures and wistful expressions gradually reveal painful secrets that had previously been buried.
Gestern adroitly unlocks the power of photographs to not only freeze a moment in time but to transport us back to a time and place and persons who have long since disappeared. Her use of letters and emails circumvents authorial intrusion by placing the reader alongside Hélène and Stéphane as they gradually unearth the past. Furthermore, the intricate description of each newly discovered photograph invites the reader to decipher the image with Hélène and Stéphane while they construct a narrative behind the image. We participate in their discovery and share in their anticipation as they unravel family secrets.
A poignant story told in compelling, eloquent prose of the role of memory in identity, of secrets shrouded in silence, of betrayal, and of the tragic loss of a life.
Highly recommended.