the first book by Philippe Martin

The Second World War was not called the “phoney war” for nothing. For five years, all humans met there, from heroes to bastards.

But, often, it is easier to talk about feats of arms, rather than weakness, not to mention cowardice. This is the angle that Philippe Martin chose for his first book Rouen, Julien’s war(Wooz Éditions).

Telling the story of the Occupation through the eyes of a teacher

School teacher in Bouville, Philippe Martin is passionate about many things: botany, meteorites, paleontology and History, “especially that of Rouen. But, I am not a historian. So, if it was to do like the others, but less well, I chose the novel instead.”

After much research in different local archives and through the works of numerous specialists, the author “tells the life of Julien, a young teacher in Déville-lès-Rouen (where the author lived for 35 years), an average French person who waits, who does not make decisions. He’s not a coward, but events pass without his involvement. He is waiting for Liberation. But, is it really possible? “.

Throughout the pages, the teacher talks about his romantic relationships, religion, daily life. “My character In spite of himself, he is familiar with collaborationbecause he doesn’t know how to say no, but also, in the end, the Resistance, out of love. One from the last hour. So he’s not a hero, but how did the majority of Rouen residents live during this period? I tried to be true to reality.”

Rouen au XXIII^e century…

Released December 2, Rouen, Julien’s waris available at Mag Presse in Malaunay, at the Colbert bookstore in Mont-Saint-Aignan and l’Armitière in Rouen, or at the Super U cultural space in Franqueville-Saint-Pierre.

“After a few Christmas markets, readers told me they were attached to the romantic character. Some, who experienced those years, found themselves there with ambivalent feelings about the jubilation of the Liberation or the welcome of the Allies who bombed the city. For others, it’s a simpler way to get into the story and understand this History. It’s making people curious,” declares Philippe Martin, whose next novel will take the splits, since it will be a vision of the Norman capital in the 23rd century.^e century. »

Rouen, Julien’s War, by Philippe Martin, from Wooz Éditions – 428 pages – 19 euros Site: www.editionswooz.fr

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