Note : 4/5
JM Coetzee's work was already rich in stainless masterpieces. From the one who was crowned with the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2003, we have never forgotten contemporary classics, such as “Waiting for the Barbarians”, “Michael K, his life, his times” or “Disgrace”. The South African writer, now an Australian citizen, has always been a discreet man, keeping out of fashion and far from the spotlight. His magnificent short new novel, “The Pole”, is both a perfect summary of his art and pure dazzling.
The “Polish” at the heart of this gem is a renowned pianist. Witold Walczykiewicz has performed on the biggest stages, notably recording, for the Deutsche Grammophon brand, controversial interpretations of Chopin because they were more austere than romantic. In 2015, this slender man, with a magnificent silver mane, around seventy years old, went to Barcelona to give a Sala Mompou recital, in the Gothic Quarter, at the invitation of the city's Concert Circle. . Beatriz, the woman responsible for receiving him, is part of the concert programming committee.
A woman's questions
JM Coetzee describes her as brunette, tall and elegant, with a soft, deep contralto voice and a gliding gait. Beatriz is almost fifty years old, a husband who is both present and distant, two sons already adults. The maestro whose name has “so many ws and zs” that she discovers in front of her, speaks in correct but labored English. That evening, they will have dinner together. Then, they will meet again in Girona, where Witold comes to give a master class at the conservatory and disturbs Beatriz by confiding in her that she brings him light, and also, later still, in Majorca.
From one end to the other of a thin and dense haunting masterpiece, JM Coetzee demonstrates the same strength and the same subtlety with which he has accustomed his readers. It is a question of soul and feelings in the poignant pages of “Polonais” which we seek to make reading last as long as possible. We follow the questions of a woman finally able to decide to cross half a continent to go to a sad and small apartment in an anonymous district of Warsaw. And leave, with a box containing the binder which brings together eighty-four poems written in the native language of its author. Language she cannot read without the help of a translator…
Hot and cold
JM Coetzee spares his effects, plays with cold and heat. He never raises his voice while closely accompanying the intimate questioning of his unforgettable heroine. Unforgettable as is Witold, the singular pianist in whom Beatriz finds a certain resemblance to the actor Max Von Sydow. During one of the rare interviews he gave to the press, Coetzee gave the following response to a journalist who asked him what music he liked to listen to: “The one I've never heard.” We could argue that he has succeeded here, largely, in the most dazzling way.
JM Coetzee, “The Pole”, translated from English (South Africa) by Sabine Porte, Seuil, 160 pages, €18.
