
Member Reviews

An extraordinarily haunting book by French author Victor Jestin.
Arthur has always been lonely and socially awkward. He builds an alternative life for himself at a local nightclub, becoming a superb dancer. "In dance, life fell into place, settling into a system of rhythms and movements where even the silences followed a certain logic; it was as if a giant grid, a familiar filter, had been superimposed over what had always struck me as chaotic and uncontrollable."
He documents his encounters, and sadly they are mostly very brief.
All of us who remember nightclubs / discos will relate to the nostalgia. I wondered where the story would go, and the ending comes as a beautiful and unexpected surprise.
I loved how Arthur includes some of the music played at the nightclub, and I created a playlist. Bravo Jestin and the translator for this outstanding study of loneliness and alternative reality.

2.5 stars
I was expecting more from this book, given its premise and blurb. It follows Arthur, a man who spends every night at the same club in his town, longing to find a connection. His life cycles through the same repeated stories, with one night stands being the norm for him. This was a little boring to read in parts, and very repetitive with two dimensional characters.