Light of My Eye [Lumière de I'œil, 1980] by Paula Jacques (review)

176Women in French Studies often extending into literary analysis. This unusual piece (previously translated in 1999 by Hilda Dale) is essentially a debate poem, in which three women ask which of them has suffered the most for love. There is a series of eleven scenes, many of which are not much more than "tableaux" of the three women in a pastoral setting, with their listener, the Queen herself, who eventually will write down the story. Skemp also translated the "Comedy of Mont-de-Marsan" (1548), a morality play with four allegorical female characters, representing materialism, religious bigotry, reason, and mystical love. Once again, the notes to this play are excellent, explaining the sixteenth-century context for debates about body vs. soul; the value of pilgrimage; reason vs. faith; the sin of pride, etc. The other two major sections of the volume include Cholakian's translation of the "Fable of False Pride" (1541), a pastoral narrative poem about nymphs, satyrs, and the goddess Diana, which was written to warn her niece Marguerite de France about the "wiles and ruses of prowling males" (233). Finally, the volume closes with four short selections from the well-known Heptaméron (Tales 4, 1 1, 69 and 72). These tales are in English only, since the French text is readily available. Comparing this translation with that of P.A. Chilton (1984) shows Cholakian's to be much superior, in terms of readability and clarity. The need for a new translation of the entire Heptaméron should be met soon by a projected volume in the same series, to be translated by Cholakian and edited by Mary B. McKinley. Aside from a few typos and a little confusion with location ofthe footnotes, this is a very useful volume which introduces American readers to Marguerite's largely religious, poetic works. We will await the projected new translation of the Heptaméron with eager anticipation. Cathleen M. Bauschatz, EméritaUniversity of Maine Jacques, Paula. Light of My Eye [Lumière de l'œil, 1980] Trans. Susan Cohen-Nicole. Teaneck: Holmes & Meier, 2009. Pp. vii-x; 260. ISBN 978-08419 -1447-6. $24. Light of My Eye is a luscious narrative whose charm lies primarily in its wonderful set of characters. Linked by the leitmotiv 'light of my eyes,' a term of endearment used by a number ofprotagonists, it is the story of a community, of a family, and of a young girl, Mona Castro, on the threshold ofteenagehood, an event which coincides with the death of her beloved father, and the 'forced' exile ofthe family to Paris. The story moves back and forth between two time frames, alternating between the mid-fifties in Cairo, corresponding to Mona's idyllic pre-teen years, and some twenty years later when she determines to write a novel about her childhood, probing her mother's memories in the process. The experiences of Mona as a child are interspersed with the gently ironic observations ofher more Book Reviews177 adult self, one ofthe great charms ofthe novel being the ability ofthe narrator to let other members of her family, all with wonderful idiosyncrasies and manners ofspeech, occupy centre-stage. We thus meet several unforgettable characters: fiery and idealistic Bolissa; Sayeda, the Arab maid; swindling and hilariously imaginative Uncle Aaron; charming Jacques—Joucky—Castro, Mona's father; the adored grand-mother Farida (there are echoes of Paule Constant's Propriété privée here); and the coquettish, vain, self-centred yet deeply attaching Rebecca—Becky—Mona's mother and keeper ofthe Castro family's memories. Jacques's novel is a tribute to a community forced to exile. While the novel alludes to political events, it is their effects on the family that hold Jacques' primary interest, and the tone is never bitter. Indeed, more poignant and dramatic scenes—such as the arrest of the Castro brothers, Bolissa's imprisonment and the tragic death of Becky's brother Simon—are told rather matter-of-factly, sometimes even with humour, in the form of an elegant emotionality which is very engaging. To help recreate the pre-exile time, great attention is given to small cultural details, in particular those belonging to the realm of 'pre-feminist' femininity. The...