THE N'GUSTRO AFFAIR by Jean-Patrick Manchette

 

THE N'GUSTRO AFFAIR by Jean-Patrick Manchette; Translated by Donald Nicholson-Smith and Introduction by Gary Indiana (NYRB)

Crime fiction writing deals with space between the image and the words and the talent to enter and leave as quickly as possible. The French author Jean-Patrick Manchette seems to be in the position of being an excellent writer, and the ability to express action, not only in a physical sense but also in its intelligence. There are certain writers one can learn from, and Manchette and Richard Stark are both writers who know how to move the narration at a speed where one turns the page after another because one may know how it ends but love the journey to getting there. 

The N'GUSTRO Affair is based on the kidnapping and killing of Mehdi Ben Barka of Morocco. Still, Manchette turns the novel focusing on Henri Butron, a psychopath thug thrown into a world that he doesn't understand and just a puppet among the others who are pulling and controlling the strings. A tight and beautifully put-together novel, which again reminds me of the mechanics of the  Parker series by Richard Stark. Not a wasted word, and therefore every thought expressed, although in a minimalist manner of stark perfection. 

"Paris Vagabond" by Jean-Paul Clébert; Introduction by Luc Sante (NYRB)

ISBN: 978-1-59017-957-4 NYRB

"Paris Vagabond" by Jean-Pual Clébert, Foreword by Luc Sante (NYRB)

Luc Sante with his "The Other Paris" wrote one of the two ultimate books on that beloved city.  He also wrote an introduction to the other essential book on the French capital that is by Jean-Paul Clébert called "Paris Vagabond."  Like "The Other Paris" this book reeks of the underclass or the belly of Parisian culture, with its homeless, drunks, criminals, streetwalkers, and everything between.   Encouraged by Blaise Cendrars, Clébert wrote the ultimate book in early 1950s on the culture that was not celebrated by overseas tourists in Paris.  Wandering from one neighborhood to the next, Clébert recorded with a pen or pencil on newsprint, wrote about those who fell or lived in the cracks of Paris.  Impressionistic as well as documentation he covers the waterfront that to some, is pure hell.  Yet, it is virtually a Jean Genet love of the squalor and dirt of the Parisian underworld.   Throughout the book it is illustrated with photographs by Patrice Molinard, who begin his career taking images for Georges Franju's documentary "Le sang des bêtes."   His aesthetic or documentation fits perfectly with Clébert's realistic poetic prose.  A superb translation by Donald Nicholson-Smith, this is the book on Paris.  A total classic.