Mouth to ear – summer 2022
When a document challenges, amuses, transports or transforms, our librarians like to share it with you. This sharing is done through “word-of-mouth” bookmarks placed in the documents available on our different sites.
We’ve selected a few below to whet your appetite.
Books
Practical manual on the art of degreasing
Louis-Sébastien Le Normand
Some books don’t age much. The practical manual on the art of degreasing, published in 1818, is one of them.
Oily substances, fruit juices, ink or chocolate – nothing can resist the methods used to restore the shine of clothes and remove the stains of everyday life. Recipes from the past remind us that simple cleaning products are the most effective and least harmful to the environment.
Sylvia, Unithèque website
The island of souls
Piergiorgio Pulixi
In the shadow of Sicily and Corsica, their Sardinian neighbor is considerably less well known in our latitudes. Piergiorgio Pulixi takes up the classic codes of the detective story, but sets his characters and his story in the cultural depths of the island, giving pride of place to dialects, local beliefs, oppositions between terroirs and between social backgrounds. Sardinia and its people are revealed in all their diversity.
The author navigates brilliantly between a reminder of the oldest history of the island from which he comes and the unfolding of an investigation that is firmly anchored in the present. The investigation is led by a duo of investigators with strong personalities who will not emerge unscathed from their discoveries. In short, a very well-paced story, almost a page turner.
St. Laurent, Riponne site
Borrow the paper book / digital book
Consumerism through its objects: shop windows, cups, deodorants, smartphones…
Jeanne Guien
Do you know the history of the cup, from its reusable version to today’s disposable version?
Have you ever heard of the handkerchief that used to be made of cloth, but is now made of paper, and as soon as you use it, you throw it away?
Philosopher and researcher Jeanne Guien examines five objects that have become part of our daily lives. She brilliantly shows how industry has created new behaviors through advertising. Through manipulation and unconscious influence, we’ve been tricked. The manufacturers, for their part, are making extraordinary profits while producing tons of waste every day.
A captivating and enlightening read from start to finish!
Patricia, Riponne site
Odette and the yellow cab
Isabelle Artus
Following Odette through her peregrinations at Roissy airport is a colorful and exhilarating experience. But then she disappears…and it’s the aptly named Marie-Soleil, her granddaughter, who sets out to find her, flanked by a cast of cheerful, endearing characters. All is not rosy, however, as their (en)quest takes them behind the scenes, including Odette’s youth under the Occupation.
In short, a book that’s both funny and touching, and one you’ll be sorry to leave!
Carole, Unithèque website
Borrowing paper / digitalbooks
Master of the djinns
Phenderson Djèlí Clark
Somewhere between steampunk and oriental fantasy, “Le maître des Djinns” stands out for the originality of its universe, in stark contrast to the usual Tolkien-style worlds.
The adventures of the agents of the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantment and Supernatural Entities take place in an Egypt that is neither the romanticized one of the Orientalists, nor the one that was ruled by the British at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. This Egypt of 1912, different from our own, is populated by djinns, angels and other magical beings drawn from Middle Eastern and Indian cultures.
We become attached to the characters, all of whom are well portrayed and integrate wonderfully into their city. Don’t hesitate to read the two novellas that precede this novel: “The Strange Case of the Cairo Jinn” and “The Mystery of the Haunted Tramway”.
St. Laurent, Riponne site
Borrowing paper / digitalbooks
Metamorphosis, awaken your consciousness
Anne Ghesquière
If you’re unfamiliar with the podcast’s eponymous title, don’t hesitate to leaf through this book and enter the world of Anne Ghesquière and her guests. Halfway between psychology and spirituality, via personal development, you’ll discover new ways of conceiving the human being and encouraging self-fulfilment. Packed with interviews, many of the texts are accompanied by infographics for intuitive understanding. A luminous universe to discover!
Carole, Unithèque website
Borrowing paper / digitalbooks
Switch
Florian Forestier
In his first novel, Florian Forestier captures our society at its breaking point: just before the fall. With his hard-hitting style, his sense of formula and a fine gallery of characters, the author assumes his committed stance. Perhaps there’s still time to pull ourselves together and bring solidarity into play. This book, as brilliant as it is disenchanted, nevertheless instills hope that another world is possible.
Emmanuelle, Unithèque website
Borrowing paper / digitalbooks
Forgetting Gabriel
Karine Yoakim Pasquier
Karine Yoakim Pasquier’s debut novel takes you back to your adolescence, with the places that make it up, the friends who are the center of your life, the music that sets the pace and the bullshit that will stay with you.
“Emily had raised her arms, shouting that it was their song […]. Louise reflected that this was everyone’s song. In the same way, Louise’s story is a little bit everyone’s story, not necessarily in this extreme of course, but everyone will find their way.
The adolescence that haunts you.
Christophe, Riponne site
Music
So far, so good
The letter carrier’s sons
With 4 albums to their credit, the duo Les fils du facteur become a quartet for the release of their latest album Jusqu’ici ça va. “Self-taught musicians cradled by eclectic, cosmopolitan influences, Les Fils du facteur plough their way with panache, flirting with a range of sounds that make up their universe.” Their French but Swiss chanson, as they say themselves, has found its audience.
A lot of dynamism, beautiful melodies, lyrics between realism and insouciance, a few touches of melancholy, a perceptible complicity and pleasure, in short, the album shows a beautiful balance. French chanson as we like it!
Suzanne, Riponne site
