The Foreign Student: A Novel

A #1 bestseller in France this is a nostalgic portrait of a French scholarship student’s discovery of America during the academic year of 1954–1955.   I wanted to fit in. I wanted to be American like any ordinary student because I figured that was my only chance to survive the immense loneliness looming ahead of me. I was elated to be there in that remote Virginia alley on that college campus. I was elated because back there far away in France my brothers would never experience this. And the school friends I left behind—they too were missing out on this tremendous adventure.   Soon the young freshman becomes seduced by American culture and the popular icons of the mid-fifties: Jack Kerouac Elvis Presley James Dean Fats Domino . . . a green Buick convertible drive-in movies and pretty Grace Kelly lookalikes in tight cardigans.. Praise for The Foreign Student   “One of those books that is beyond criticism . . . a vivid portrait of life American style.”—L’Express   “A love affair with America . . . told with precision clarity and warmth.”—France-Soir   “A Sentimental Education of the American South.”—Lu   “A grand risk successfully realized . . . F. Scott Fitzgerald French style. A splendid novel about a fragile fugitive era.”—Magazine Litteraire   “The freshness of a first novel combined with nuanced reporting.”—Le Monde