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In this spellbinding novel, which has been compared to the work of Jonathan Franzen, Dave Eggers and Jeffrey Eugenides, Saskia de Coster provides a uniquely European take on the tradition of 'The Great American Novel.' With the family unit and some of life's most pressing questions at its center, the award winning We and Me paints a captivatingly haunting picture of bourgeois family life. Written from several different perspectives, We and Me covers the time period between 1980 and 2013 and focuses on the aristocratic Vandersanden family. Set in their opulent private estate located atop a mountain, neuroses, claustrophobia, scandal and rebellion run rife. At the heart of the family and the novel is Sarah, whose coming of age is both daringly and sensitively explored in de Coster's skillful prose. With her characteristically incisive approach, de Coster excavates the nuanced underbelly of human emotions with humor, understanding and a lightness of touch. We and Me is a remarkable and compelling tale by one of the greatest Belgian writers of our time.
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Reviews
"Reminiscent of Jonathan Coe's What a Carve Up, Saskia de Coster sends up the Belgian professional class. With piercing observation and wry comment, she depicts the inner insecurities behind the confident façade."
Geoff Crocker on Amazon
"Tender and cruel Saskia De Coster unravels the illusions of social climbers, in a novel that shows that every unhappy family is still unhappy in its own way."
Tommy Wieringa, author of These are the Names
"As sharp as a knife and with great psychological insight the author investigates the 'we' feeling versus the longing for freedom and individuality. Sarah is a contemporary Emma Bovary or Anna Karenina [...] We and Me is like a breath of fresh air, because of its content as well as its virtuous form and fluent, ironic style."
Opzij Literature Prize