On the day that her father is to be buried Madelience suffers further tragedy when her seven year old son falls from a high window and is left paralysed. Madeleine must look after her son and also her position as head of an important bank. However she has little head for business and trusts the wrong people, losing her inheritance and leaving herself and her son destitute. From this Madeleine has to build her life again in the Paris of the 1930s.
This is the second book in Lemaitre's trilogy set in Paris between the wars. I found this one quite difficult to engage with for the first section but once the plot had started to kick in properly I realised what makes Lemaitre so good. In common with many classical writers he takes a cast of characters and develops them slowly and with great care. Sometimes the prose drags a little but the sly humour is always there.

Paris in the interwar period. It's been so romanticized, in literature and film, by so many different raconteurs. Most narratives that I've read, however, deal with the Lost Generation, and Gertrude Stein, and the artists at the Latin Quarter and Montparnasse. What you don't really end up realizing, however, is that the reason so many starving artists were able to afford to stay in such an exciting city, before their careers had taken off, was that France was going through quite a recession. Inflation was high, the veterans of WWI had returned, not quite sound in life and limb, to find that they really weren't suited to the sort of employment required, and their government couldn't really recover the reparations expected from Germany. This book doesn't ( ad the first book in the planned trilogy) give you the usual Bohemian scene and looks at the time period from the perspective of the citizens. The protagonist is Madeleine Pericourt ( the sister of Edouard Pericourt, and ex-wife of the unscrupulous protagonist of the first book, The Great Swindle, that won the Prix Goncourt), the heir to the Pericourt banking fortune. The story's ostensibly about Madeleine's fall, and subsequent rise and revenge on everyone who had a hand in destroying her fortunes. (The title comes from 'The Count of Monte Cristo') Through this, Lemaitre explores both the economic and political situation of the inter-war years, the faint but steady undercurrent of anti-Semitism and surprisingly for me, the growing support for Mussolini-style fascism. He documents the crony capitalism of the time and the deleterious effects it has on the country excellently, with the politicians and captains of industry and business all in cahoots with each other, and it's beautifully woven into the story. One of the characters is a columnist with fascist sympathies, and the book includes his columns at regular intervals, it's incredible how contemporary his views seem. The author includes an afterword where he mentions all his sources, and all the research he did to read contemporary newspaper accounts of the time to make the book authentic, and it clearly shows in how gripping it is. If I have one quibble, it's that the character of Madeleine left me cold, while all the other characters, are so memorable, from manipulative Leonce, superwoman Vladi, magnificent activist opera singer Solange. It's also so refreshing to read of a differently abled protagonist who isn't there in the story merely as an advocate for euthanasia. I would have liked more of M. Dupre's perspective-he's so super competent at absolutely everything, like Arsene Lupin if he were a Communist veteran of WWI. Maybe there should be another book just about him!
I didn't know at all that France went through bank failures and a huge tax evasion scandal at the time, while Picasso and Hemingway were drinking/brawling at the Deux Magots and CLoserie des Lilas. Paris of that time has always seemed to me an artistic paradise that was suddenly plunged into WWII. That was clearly not the case, and all those owners of bars who let artists reimburse them in paintings, would have faced actual financial difficulties because of their generosity. I bought the first book of this trilogy as soon s I finished this ( they work perfectly well as standalone books as well), and that was as compelling and thought-provoking. Can't wait for the translation of the third part to be released!

All Human Wisdom starts seven years after the events in The Great Swindle. Plutocrat Marcel Pericourt has just died, leaving behind his daughter Madeleine and grandson Paul. At the funeral, Paul falls from an upstairs window and crashes into the hearse.

This accident changes Madeleine's life for good. She is now forced to look after Paul first and foremost, and trust advisers to take care of financial matters. As the great crash of 1929 approaches this proves to be a disastrous choice. The Pericourt family fortune is wiped out.

The rest of the story proceeds in a manner very similar to The Count of Monte Cristo, a debt that Lemaitre acknowledges in an afterword. It's a revenge tale with a few twists added in, against the historical background of the crash, and the rise of fascism in Europe. I would happily have given this five stars, except for the occasional flippant comment directed to the reader in the narration, which personally I could have done without. I think this story works better when Lemaitre is not trying to inject humour into it.

The second in a trilogy, the first of which, The Great Swindle , I believed could not be bettered. How wrong I was. This writer imagines a bizarre set of circumstances into a storyline that links events, and develops characters like no other. A horrifying event at a funeral in the first chapter draws the reader into the beginning of a catastrophic series of incidents and accidents that will leave a hugely respectable and wealthy family destitute and a young child seriously injured. Ill equipped to deal with adversity, our chief protagonist falls prey to family, friends and employees whom she believed to have her best interests at heart: unknowingly, evil forces are at play with the intention of using her dire circumstances to raise their standing and success in the cut throat world of wealth, power and politics. Intricate actions and events are balanced against exquisitely drawn characters combining into a finally crafted book like no other. And then unexpectedly and without fanfare the story moves into an even more complex scenario when retribution enters the frame. If revenge is a dish best served cold, this denouement is straight from the freezer. Slowly, methodically and with calculating precision a second story emerges from the ashes of this family tragedy. A series of incidents unfold in cold blooded and frightening intensity that ensures no stone be left unturned until the perpetrators are called to account for their actions. A conclusion that many may believe deserving but simultaneously will chill to the bones. In awe of the many challenges when reading any book by this writer notwithstanding the many references to French history, politics and the arts that add to the depth of passion and detail that enrich characters and storyline. Like others by this writer, the movie that must be made from this book is awaited with eager anticipation. Heartfelt thanks to author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this exquisite book.

All Human Wisdom is the sophomore instalment in the Between the Wars trilogy by award-winning writer Pierre Lemaitre. Set between 1927 and 1933, this continuation of the adventures of the Péricourt family begins with the funeral of Patriarch Marcel, a massive ceremony attended by everyone who is, or aspires to be, someone in Paris. However, things are not looking too good for Madeleine, the heir to her huge family estate. Adding to the suicide of her brother Édouard, the disfigured hero, the imprisonment of her con-man ex-husband and the death of her father, is added the delicate situation of her son Paul, a seven-year-old boy who has just suffered a horrible mishap. Thus, at this very vulnerable moment in her life, Madeleine must take command of a financial institution with the more than dubious help of a resentful manager, a greedy gray uncle with evil intentions and a young lover with the pretense of a journalist.

And all this in an environment of secrets, betrayals, blackmails and tricks in which unscrupulous fortune seekers and politicians thrive without control, oblivious to the imminent stock market crash and unaware of the war hecatomb that is looming over Europe. Surrender to the freshness, plasticity and liveliness of an apparently light prose that, as in the best nineteenth-century serials, feeds an enveloping and complex plot in which characters that arouse curiosity and stimulate imagination. With the overwhelming force of a whirlwind, All Human Wisdom masterfully weaves the relentless revenge of a woman while offering a superb portrait of a troubled and dizzying era. This explosive, brilliant and fun novel, in which acrimony merges with melancholy, has consolidated Pierre Lemaitre as one of the fundamental pillars of today's French narrative. Highly recommended.

A new to me author but I loved every moment of this book. It's full of dark humour, gripping and well written.
I loved the storytelling, the tightly knitted flow and the great characters.
The historical background is vivid and realistic.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Splendid tale, the second in :Lemaitre's historical trilogy. When Madeleine's family bank is ruined by an inner plot she seeks revenge on all of those who have wronged her and her son. Set in 1920's and 1930's France Lemaitre populates the tale with wonderful characters and a genial "looking over their shoulders" narrative which skillfully draws the tale through the machinations of Madeleines plotting. Highly Recommended.

All Human Wisdom by Pierre Lemaitre is the sequel to The Great Swindle,a book I massively enjoyed reading last year .The begins in 1927 with the funeral of wealthy Banker Marcel Pericourt, disaster strikes when 7 year-old Grandson Paul falls from a window,landing on the coffin. Daughter Madeleine finds herself somewhat disinterestedly taking over the reins of the Bank while trying to care for the severely disabled Paul.
Surrounded by Wolves she is easy prey for people who take advantage of her situation and naivety and quite cold-bloodedly take almost everything she has,leaving her almost destitute..
Once Madeleine realises that her bad luck has actually been engineered she embarks on a crusade to get justice and make those responsible pay for their actions.

As with The Great Swindle it's sequel is full of larger than life characters and slightly surreal situations that border on farce. That's not a criticism as the whole thing is great fun and Lemaitre balances an engrossing tale of revenge ,an insight into many aspects of pre-WW2 France and often quite hilarious comic moments expertly. Like Chris Brookmyre , Pierre Lemaitre's characters ,their foibles,weaknesses and quirks are often as hilarious as the situations they get themselves into. I doubt it's for everyone as it's a bit quirky ,you'll either get the humour and enjoy the sometimes bizarre directions it takes or you'll just think it's a bit odd,but I really enjoyed it.

I absolutely loved this book and hope we get last part of the trilogy in this country very soon.