I fell in love with Irene Nemirovsky's prose when I read "Suite Francaise," and was delighted to find "All Our Worldy Goods." Both books were published posthumously, as the author died at Auschwitz.In this book, Nemirovsky brings us four generations of the Hardelot family of Saint-Elme. Beginning in 1910 with Pierre and Agnes, both engaged to others in arranged marriages, deciding to run away and marry for love and ending in the middle of the German occupation, the tale shows the French middle class in all of their foibles. Pierre's father is a wealthy industrialist who wants him to marry the monied Simone Renaudin in order to keep the business afloat. Simone, upon being jilted, is determined to ruin the Hardelot family. Against the backdrop of two world wars, deprivation and restoration, the family saga plays out to a satisfying conclusion.The story is exceptionally well-written, with an underlying compassion and humor that involves the reader in the Hardelot and Renaudin households as though they are well-known neighbors.Although this book was a contemporary piece for Nemirovsky, fans of historical fiction, as well as fans of literary fiction, as sure to enjoy it.(Review based on uncorrected advance proof.)
