[Lecture] Five books to be moved, questioned or shivered – Face Face

Question the caregiver-patient relationships. Highlight medical advances. Probing fears and differences… But also showing what allows you to get back up, what excites you… Selection of books, testimonials or fiction, chosen by the editorial staff.

♦ Cher parasite, cystic fibrosis and the health system

Suffering from cystic fibrosis, Louis Eimery held on in his fight against this rare and fatal disease. How ? By investing fully in your care and thus resisting the flaws of a health system that is sometimes poorly adapted to chronic illnesses.

In this autobiographical story, Louis Eimery explores his daily life as a patient with cystic fibrosis. « I learned to live with it very young. It has never defined me but it is an integral part of what I have become: an insatiable lover of life. » If he felt, for a time, spared by the illness, everything collapsed when he was 24. “Culture”, as he calls it, suddenly caused his respiratory capacity to drop.

Question support

And « parasite » which, moreover, is not limited to the disease itself. But also encompasses a health system which adds to an already exhausting fight. How ? By forgetting the therapeutic collaboration between caregivers and patients. Depicting a complicated and unpleasant journey, Louis Eimery highlights the absurdity of certain situations, such as delays in treatment and lack of listening. Gold, “understanding, explaining, is already better treatment of ills ».

Celebrate progress too

Despite his harsh observation, nourished by sharp writing, his story is not devoid of hope. It thus underlines the moments of solidarity and the medical advances which breathe new life and save lives such as the new Kaftrio® treatment thanks to which, from now on, for Louis Eimery it is no longer a question of experiencing his illness but of living his life.

Cher parasiteLouis Eimery, Il est Midi éditions, 230 p., 2014, €20.

♦ Life devoured, write to survive

When illness strikes and the body falters, sometimes only words remain to keep us standing. In The Devoured Lifethe author takes us into a raw story, where writing becomes his weapon in the face of myeloma.

Suffering from a rare and incurable bone marrow cancer, Olivier Martinelli explores the devastation of the announcement, the fear, the weight of the treatments, the emotional roller coaster, but also the hope and the strength to resist. Faced with this myeloma, writing has become a vital outlet for him, a space where he can express his doubts and his unwavering rage for life.

Life devouredOlivier Martinelli, ed. Kubik, 198 p., €15.

♦ My little finger told me, the strength of an extraordinary journey

Paralympic ski champion, Marie Bochet talks about her journey full of obstacles and victories. She talks about how her difference shaped her desire to surpass herself, making her life a human and sporting adventure.

Marie Bochet was born with agenesis of the left forearm, “ with this little finger, which has become my fetish, my trademark and which today gives the title to this book “. She shares the milestones of her life, from her childhood in Savoie… to her countless medals on the slopes around the world and her retirement from competition. Moments made of doubts but also of successes thanks to the support of her family and her strong determination, she who never let her disability define her dreams.

The numerous color photos which dot his intimate testimony attest to this. A book that serves as an invitation to dare, to believe in your abilities and to push your limits, even when they seem out of reach.

My little finger told meMarie Bochet, ed. book enthusiasts, 2024, 324 p., €19.90.

♦ Monsters, refusing to enter a box

In this second volume of What I like is monstersEmil Ferris continues his intimate exploration of human darkness. Art becomes an outlet in the face of violence and the mysteries of memory.

Through the eyes of Karen, a young girl fascinated by the creatures of the imagination, Emil Ferris questions the boundaries between the human and the monstrous. By mixing thriller, family dramas and reflections on art. Each page of his graphic novel is drawn with a ballpoint pen. A feat, Emil Ferris having been struck by a serious form of West Nile syndrome at the age of 40, leaving his right hand unable to hold… a pen, among other things, for a long time.

In the style of a personal notebook, the whole thing is full of details to decipher. This makes the work as hypotonic as it is complex: a story anchored in pain, intended to be an ode to identity and imagination. Transcending genres, being a monster, is perhaps simply refusing to fit into boxes.

What I like is monsters 2ed. Monsieur Toussaint Louverture, 2024, 416 p., €34.90.

♦ The Leonardo brigade, the unknown of darkness

This fifth volume once again takes the reader into the world of dreams and buried fears. Tristan, in a wheelchair, and his friends must this time unravel the secret of an enigmatic teenager, with nightmares more dangerous than they imagined.

New mission for the Nightmare Brigade: penetrate those of Leonardo with his troubled past. Very quickly, Tristan, Esteban and Sarah discover that they are populated by terrifying creatures who seem to resist all their attempts at intervention. However, it is about saving Tristan's mother, herself… Suspense, twists and turns and dreamlike explorations are at the heart of this story, which mixes fantasy and psychology.

The Nightmare Brigade – Volume 5, ed. Jungle, 64 p., €13.95.