The Island of Books
2018 Longlist

The Island of Books

Translated from the French by Rhonda Mullins

ABOUT
THE BOOK

A rich portrait of the beauty of words – painted by a 15th-century illiterate scribe.

A 15th-century portrait painter, grieving the sudden death of his lover, takes refuge at the monastery at Mont Saint-Michel, an island off the coast of France. He haunts the halls until a monk assigns him the task of copying a manuscript – though he is illiterate. His work slowly heals him and continues the tradition that had, centuries earlier, grown the monastery’s library into a beautiful city of books, all under the shadow of the invention of the printing press.

ABOUT
THE AUTHOR Dominique
Fortier

Dominique Fortier is an editor and translator living in Outremont, Quebec. Her first novel, On the Proper Use of Stars, was nominated for a Governor General’s Award, and Au péril de la mer won the Governor General’s Award for French fiction. She is the author of five books, two of which have been translated into English.

Dominique Fortier is an editor and translator living in Outremont, Quebec. Her first novel, On the Proper Use of Stars, was nominated for a Governor General’s Award, and Au péril de la mer won the Governor General’s Award for French fiction. She is the author of five books, two of which have been translated into English.

NOMINATING LIBRARY COMMENTS

Dominique Fortier offers here a very delicate and personal book, trying to catch the spirit of such a magnificent place as the Mont St-Michel. The novel is a tribute to books and freedom.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Date published
08/11/2016
Publisher
Coach House Books
Translator
Rhonda Mullins
Translation
Translated from the French by Rhonda Mullins

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