The title of a short novel by European author
Agota Kristof, curiously translated from "Le Grand Cahier" (
French). Originally published in
Paris in 1986, it is the author's first novel. Grouped with
The Proof and
The Third Lie, its sequels, in later publications.
The notebook belongs to two unnamed
twin boys in an unnamed
East-European country during
World War II, first allied with the
Nazis, then conquered by the
Russians and integrated into the
Soviet Union. These details are never disclosed explicitly within the book, but can be worked out with ease. It retains its value, however, as an account pertaining to
war in general, and not specifically to WWII. It also deals with the subjects of
class discrimination,
racism,
childhood and human
morals, through this main
theme and independently of it.
The pair serves as a single unit,
always, and communicates with the reader using the
plural form throughout the entire book. They are
quick, determined learners and never forget anything. They never make
mistakes. To me, they represent the survival and evolution of an
ideal throughout circumstances that obliterate the
normal code of morality, and later on the
individual. Be this the case or not, the book is heavily loaded with subtext.
The text consists of short essay tasks the twins assign to themselves, written in a simplistic, objective and factual manner very uncharacteristic of children. The language itself would've made a
smooth, easy read, if not for the content which is often appalling either morally,
sexually, or both.
The war is, of course, masked from the twins by a veil of
words, or rather the lack thereof, but they perceive everything that happens around them nonetheless. This is not, therefore, a childish account laden with
innocence and
question marks, but rather with the insightful grasps of a pair unmolested by cowardice, dishonesty and
ignorance.
The ending is brilliant.