Set in Paris and war-torn Lebanon in the 1980s, The Multiple Child is a timeless tale in a spare yet elegant style by a powerful writer admired worldwide. The title character, Omar-Jo, a child of war and of peace, has the power and vision of Oskar of The Tin Drum and the gentle wisdom of The Little Prince. After Omar-Jo loses his parents and one of his arms in a bomb blast in Lebanon, his grandfather sends the boy to live with relatives in Paris. There he meets Maxime, the owner of a carousel that has fallen into disrepair. The child breathes new life into the carousel - a character in its own right - as well as into its owner and patrons. Omar-Jo plays the part of the wise "all the zanies, all the fools, all the 'grasiosos,' all the minstrels, the itinerant players, the white-faced clowns, the Monsieur Loyals, the Augustes, of times past and present, dwelt in his body." In this novel, Chedid illuminates the essence of conflict and redemption.
Author
Andrée Chedid was a French poet and novelist of Christian Lebanese descent. When she was ten, she was sent to a boarding school, where she learned English and French. At fourteen, she left for Europe. She then returned to Cairo to go to an American university. Her dream was to become a dancer. She got married to a physician when she was twenty-two, with whom she has two children: Louis Chedid, now a famous French singer, and Michèle. Her work questions human condition and what links the individual to the world. Her writing seeks to evoke the Orient, but she focuses more in denouncing the civil war that destroys Lebanon. She has lived in France since 1946. Because of this diverse background, her work is truly multicultural. Her first book was written in English: On the Trails of my Fancy. She has commented about her work that it is an eternal quest for humanity. Andrée Chedid is the grandmother of the French rock star -M- (Louis Chedid's son) for whom she has contributed song lyrics including that of Bonoboo on the album Je dis aime.
