The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

By Bright Summaries

Unlock the more straightforward side of The Kindly Ones with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!
This engaging summary presents an analysis of The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell, the gripping and graphic story of Max Aue, an SS officer during World War II, who is forced to bear the weight of the atrocities he has contributed to, his increasingly incestuous fantasies and even the fact that he is wanted for murder. Despite being the subject of widespread scandal and mixed critical and public opinion, the novel received two prestigious French literary prizes after it was published, including the Grand Prix du Roman de l'Académie Française. Littell is a French-American author with a Jewish background, who became known following the publication of this work, which also received the 2009 British Bad Sex in Fiction Award.
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This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:• A complete plot summary• Character studies• Key themes and symbols• Questions for further reflection
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• Language: English
• Publisher: BrightSummaries.com
• Release date: Nov 9, 2016
• ISBN: 9782806279859

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Franco-American writer

Born in New York in 1967

Notable works:

The Kindly Ones (2006), novel

Le Sec et l’Humide (2008), novel

Récit sur rien (2009), novel

Jonathan Littell was born in New York in 1967 to a Jewish family of Polish origin. After living in France for a long time, where he took his baccalauréat in 1985, he went to Yale University and graduated in art and literature. Following this, he travelled extensively, notably to the Balkans, Afghanistan and Africa. He had been haunted by the atrocities of the Holocaust and World War II since his childhood, and began writing his first novel, The Kindly Ones, in 2001. The novel was published in 2006 and, despite being highly controversial, was awarded the Prix Goncourt and the Grand Prix du Roman de l’Académie Française (two of the most prestigious literary awards in France).

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