Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris, 1932

Francine Prose has gathered quite the cavalcade of eccentric, intriguing characters in her latest novel: Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris, 1932.  Most of the characters in this work of historical fiction are based on real-life people, just not people like you or me.

Prose has stated that her work was originally inspired by a black and white photo she saw while visiting the National Gallery in Washington about fifteen years ago. Intrigued by a photo titled Lesbian Couple at Le Monocle, 1932, depicting the cross-dressing French athlete-turned-Gestapo-henchwoman,Violette Morris, and her lover, Prose began considering writing Morris' biography. Soon Prose was completely captivated by the bohemian, some might say decadent pre-World War II culture of Paris with its anything-goes lifestyle.

Go on.....tell me more....

And she does; in great detail and with great story-telling power. The narrative structure of the novel keeps us on our toes. With a constant shifting of narrators and perspectives, the story moves forward at a quick pace. We see the protagonist, named Louisianne (later called Lou) in the novel, as a child separated from her family in order to protect her from an emotionally disturbed older brother.  We see her progression through life as a study in the genesis of evil, and with adequate foreshadowing, understand that Lou is destined to do terrible acts against her government, her country and her friends. We also understand that Lou has been the recipient of acts of evil and cannot help but reflect on how the treatment Lou received as a child and young woman are powerful determinants in the direction her life takes.

Lovers... is populated with many other historically based characters as well: the Hungarian photographer who took the black and white photo which inspired Prose, and the egomaniacal writer based on Henry Miller, among others. These characters and more contribute to the narration of the story. Towards the end of her turbulent life, Lou establishes what she believes to be a strong, personal relationship with Hitler and it is this delusional relationship that drives her actions.

I found the novel to be highly engaging, although a little on the long side. The heavy foreshadowing perhaps contributed to my occasional impatience with the speed with which the plot unfolded. This novel is for the patient reader who is not distracted but intrigued by shifting narrators and perspective.    
I found the story very engrossing and spent time delving into the real-life counterparts of many of the characters while reading the novel which added to my level of engagement.

Just as it's true that history changes depending on who tells it, so does a story.

My rating ***