Under the Stone (Sous beton)

From birth, the child was locked away in a minuscule cell, at #804 of level 5969 of the Edifice. Around him ... only concrete, without a view of the outside world. And two people: the tyrannical father, slowly killing himself; and the mother, fearing eviction. Unmoving in his roost, the child's life will be disrupted by a transformation that will reveal an unexpected horizon. Praise for Under the Stone: "Although thematically this novel is not a relaxing read, it is beautifully written in short, sparse sections that cumulatively build toward a horrendous, yet engaging, alternate reality. Homel's translation progresses fluidly so that the language never distracts from the narrative, but rather lodges the reader deeper and deeper Under the Stone." (Montreal Review of Books) Under the Stone exists on the fault line between novel and poem, exploring a monochromatic world haunted by the ghost of self-conscience. Dark but deeply engaging. "Echoes of George Orwell's 1984 are heard throughout this excellent novel with its style as cold and dark as whatever lies under the stone... " (Lisanne Rhéault-Leblanc, 7 jours)