Synopses & Reviews
On the northwest coast of France, just around the corner from the English Channel, is the little town of Locmariaquer (pronounced "loc-maria-care"). The inhabitants of this town have a special relationship to the world, for it is their efforts that maintain the supply of the famous Belon oysters, called les plates ("the flat ones"). A vivid account of the cultivation of Belon oysters and an excursion into the myths, legends, and rich, vibrant history of Brittany and its extraordinary people, The Oysters of Locmariaquer is also an unforgettable journey to the heart of a fascinating culture and the enthralling, accumulating drama of a unique devotion.
Synopsis
On the northwest coast of France, just around the corner from the English Channel, is the little town of Locmariaquer. The inhabitants of this town maintain the supply of the famous belon oysters, called les plates ("the flat ones"). Winner of the 1965 National Book Award, The Oysters of Locmariaquer is a vivid, fascinating account of how Belon oysters are cultivated and, at the same time, it is an excursion into the historical background, myths, and legends of Brittany. At the center of this unique narrative, presented in turn after turn of slowly accumulating drama, are the lives of people who make the oyster growing possible.
"A sturdy, unconventional piece of writing. . . . The Oysters of Locmariaquer] belongs to a class of one. . . . It calls to mind a quickly braided multicolored rope in which strands enmesh and enfold and enhance one another in perpetual reappearance. . . . Much wit and patience and all the sense we have went into making this book." - New York Review of Books
Synopsis
Winner of the National Book Award
" Clark's] fantastic blending of science and art, history and journalism, brings the appetite back for life and literature both." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review
On the northwest coast of France, just around the corner from the English Channel, is the little town of Locmariaquer (pronounced "loc-maria-care"). The inhabitants of this town have a special relationship to the world, for it is their efforts that maintain the supply of the famous Belon oysters, called les plates ("the flat ones"). A vivid account of the cultivation of Belon oysters and an excursion into the myths, legends, and rich, vibrant history of Brittany and its extraordinary people, The Oysters of Locmariaquer is also an unforgettable journey to the heart of a fascinating culture and the enthralling, accumulating drama of a unique devotion.
Synopsis
Winner of the National Book Award
"What an elegant book this is, starting with that most elegant of creatures, the Belon oyster. . . . Clark's] fantastic blending of science and art, history and journalism, brings the appetite back for life and literature both." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review
On the northwest coast of France, just around the corner from the English Channel, is the little town of Locmariaquer (pronounced loc-maria-care). The inhabitants of this town have a special relationship to the world, for it is their efforts that maintain the supply of the famous Belon oysters, called les plates (the flat ones). A vivid account of the cultivation of Belon oysters and an excursion into the myths, legends, and rich, vibrant history of Brittany and its extraordinary people, The Oysters of Locmariaquer is also an unforgettable journey to the heart of a fascinating culture and the enthralling, accumulating drama of a unique devotion.
About the Author
Eleanor Clark (July 6, 1913-February 16, 1996) was born in Los Angeles and attended Vassar College in the 1930s. She was the author of the National Book Award winner The Oysters of Locmariaquer, Rome and a Villa, Eyes, Etc., and the novels The Bitter Box, Baldur's Gate, and Camping Out. She was married to Robert Penn Warren.