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    Waiting for Bojangles
    Waiting for Bojangles
    Waiting for Bojangles
    Audiobook3 hours

    Waiting for Bojangles

    Written by Olivier Bourdeaut

    Narrated by Gibson Frazier

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    An “oddball fairy tale” (The New York Times)—shortlisted for one of France’s highest literary prizes—a dark, funny, and wholly charming novel about a young boy and his eccentric family, who grapple with the realities of mental illness in unique and whimsical ways.

    A young boy lives with his madcap parents, Louise and George, and an exotic bird in a Parisian apartment, where the unopened mail rises in a tower by the door and his parents dance each night to Nina Simone’s mellifluous classic “Mister Bojangles.” As his mother, mesmerizing and unpredictable, descends deeper into her own mind, it is up to the boy and his father to keep her safe—and, when that fails, happy. Fleeing Paris for a country home in Spain, they come to understand that some of the most radiant people bear the heaviest burdens.

    Told from the perspective of a young boy who idolizes his parents—and from George’s journals, detailing his epic love story with his wife—Waiting for Bojangles is a “lighthearted and yet sorrowful tale” (San Francisco Chronicle) that will stay with you long after the final page.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    TranslatorRegan Kramer
    Release dateMar 19, 2019
    ISBN9781508280453
    Author

    Olivier Bourdeaut

    Olivier Bourdeaut is a writer living in France. Waiting for Bojangles is his first novel.

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    Reviews for Waiting for Bojangles

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    • 3/5
      This is a first novel by french writer Olivier Bourdeaut, which won a 'Prix du Roman Des Étudiants and so could be considered a novel for young adults. It also won the Grand Prix RTL-Lire (2016) which is an award for a French language novel chosen by a jury of readers and so it has wide appeal. It is the story of a family of three: the two parents and their young son, who act out a fairly bizarre life style. It is told from the POV of the son, but also from notes for an unpublished novel written by his father.It starts with the son describing a typical day in the life of the family. His father has retired early from a position in the French Government and his wife and he seem to be acting out a sort of fantasy life. Every day his father invents a new name for his wife to whom he is devoted. She loves the attention and plays along, she is addicted to the dance and to a lesser extent to alcohol. Every day the couple dance to the NIna Simone recording of Mr Bojangles which is a focal point of their day. The father is spending his free time writing a novel and their son fits himself into their life which is also shared with a large African bird of the parrot family. They have a chateau across the border in Spain where they spend some holiday time and a senator from the fathers old working life attaches himself to the crazy family life style. The son of course is doing badly in school, but the parents are so wrapped up in themselves they hardly notice. They seem oblivious to the world outside and although they have a circle of oddball friends we realise that things are not quite right: they hardly ever open any post and leave their mail in a heap in their hall, their alcohol consumption is on the increase and they are starting to alienate some of their friends with their behaviour. The tax man arrives with an enormous bill that they cannot pay........., The bizarre behaviour points to some sort of mental illness and it is no surprise when this becomes an issue. However it is a romance first and foremost: a mad love affair that takes two people and their son (and a parrot) down a road that is never going to end well. There is nothing new here in the story telling, the novel starts off as a comedy and then becomes more of a bizarre fantasy acted out by a family seemingly bent on destruction. The tone of the novel is melancholic rather than tragic and a suspension of belief is required from the reader. By having the son tell the majority of the story enhances the mystery through his naive approach to his family. The notes of his father's unpublished writing are cleverly interwoven to provide some background. The comedy, the romance all tinged with a certain melancholy as the novel progresses, supplies the charm and probably the popularity of this first novel. 3 stars.
    • 4/5
      Original and inventive. A Dr. Seuss kind of book but for adults dealing with a heartbreaking mental illness. The young boy in this book remains unnamed, his mother has different names bestowed on her by the father. A quirky, madcap life, totally without structure as the family tries to come to terms with the mothers manic moods in a totally unique way. The family live a free flowing life, one that flows and totally embraces the mothers moods. They even have a crane as a pet that is named Madam Superfluous. How clever is that? I in no way embrace the things this young boy is allowed to do but do understand the heartbreak of living with someone who has a mental illness. There is so much love in this book, that is apparent and wonderful to behold. I've never read anything quite like this, but applaud the author for her different take on loving someone with a mental illness. Love so strong that one enters the illness itself. Unrealistic possibly, but stirring to read.ARC from Netgalley.
    • 4/5
      Who said that watching French movies / reading French books is more annoying then watching paint dry? Well, .... Here's an exception, and what an exception. The author surprises us with a double viewpoint on a fantastic hilarious woman. The son and the husband reflect on their life as son and as husband to what is a most entertaining, most intriguing life led by the mother / wife but sadly largely due to mental illness. Whilst the books makes you laugh and you start to imagine a large part of it, especially the parties that never seem to end, it turns slightly into more dark moments still surrounded by the hilarious moments. To then surprise you back at the end with a climax..... immediately followed by the end. Warning: you will get wet eyes. You do. Or you gave your heart and imagination away a long time ago. And somewhat later you will hesitate to review this book because it leaves you with a lot of feelings. Very mixed feelings that is. An incredible debut. Thank you Olivier.