Daniel Anselme Boeken

'Paris only likes its soldiers when they're parading tamely . . . it doesn't want to see them when they're close up' Three soldiers are on leave in Paris. As they make their way through the city, drinking, gambling and raging against a savage war they're forced to fight in a faraway place, they come to realize they are strangers in their own country. On Leave, published in 1957 as France's engagement in Algeria became ever more bloody, vividly describes the shame, isolation and terror felt by men returning from an unpopular war. 'Superb, as important as it is outstanding.' Eileen Battersby,Irish Times 'A rare find . . . captures with great precision the sense that all soldiers must feel on returning from the front: that their homeland is no longer home.' Andrew Hussey, Literary Review Translated by David Bellos

Set against the backdrop of an unpopular war, the narrative follows three soldiers as they return home, grappling with the psychological and emotional scars of their experiences. The story delves into themes of trauma, camaraderie, and the struggle to reintegrate into civilian life. As the characters confront their past and the societal indifference towards their sacrifices, the novel offers a poignant exploration of the human condition and the lingering effects of conflict.