Awards
Winner of the 2004 Prix de Flore
Synopses & Reviews
Winner of the 2004 Prix de Floreone of France's most distinguished literary prizesa wildly romantic, true-life love story History follows a trail of sputtering desire, often calling upon the delusions of lovers to generate the sparks. If it werent for us, the world would suffer from a dismal lack of stories," writes Bruce Benderson in this brutally candid memoir.
What astonishes and intrigues is Bendersons way of recounting, in the sweetest possible voice, things that are considered shocking,” wrote Le Monde. Whats so shocking? Its not just Bendersons job translating Céline Dions saccharine autobiography, which he admits is driving him mad; but his unrequited love for an impoverished Romanian in cheap club-kid platforms with dollar signs in his squinting eyes,” whom he meets while on a journalism assignment in Eastern Europe.
Rather than retreat, Benderson absorbs everything he can about Romanian culture and discovers an uncanny similarity between his own obsession for the Romanian (named Romulus) and the disastrous love affair of King Carol II, the last king of Romania (1893-1953). Throughout, Bendersonabsolutely free of bitterness, nastiness, or any desire to protect himself,” wrote Le Mondeis sustained by little white codeine pills, a poetic self-awareness, a sense of humor, and an unwavering belief in the perfect romance, even as wild dogs chase him down Romanian streets.
Review
"Benderson, if he really is the man he describes in this autobiographical account of lust and obsession, is a mass of self-absorbed contradictions that he peels away layer by layer, never seeming to reach a solid core beneath." New York Times
Review
"Benderson weaves a startlingly beautiful tapestry...all supported by the central thread, the analysis of a relationship." Library Journal
Review
"Repetitive, smarmy and self-satisfied. Slumming never seemed quite so bourgeois." Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
"History follows a trail of sputtering desire, often calling upon the delusions of lovers to generate the sparks. If it weren't for us, the world would suffer from a dismal lack of stories," writes Bruce Benderson in this brutally candid memoir.
"What astonishes and intrigues is Benderson's way of recounting, in the sweetest possible voice, things that are considered shocking," wrote Le Monde. What's so shocking? It's not just Benderson's job translating Céline Dion's saccharine autobiography, which he admits is driving him mad; but his unrequited love for an impoverished Romanian in "cheap club-kid platforms with dollar signs in his squinting eyes," whom he meets while on a journalism assignment in Eastern Europe.
Rather than retreat, Benderson absorbs everything he can about Romanian culture and discovers an uncanny similarity between his own obsession for the Romanian (named Romulus) and the disastrous love affair of King Carol II, the last king of Romania (1893-1953). Throughout, Benderson "absolutely free of bitterness, nastiness, or any desire to protect himself," wrote Le Monde is sustained by little white codeine pills, a poetic self-awareness, a sense of humor, and an unwavering belief in the perfect romance, even as wild dogs chase him down Romanian streets.
About the Author
Bruce Benderson is the first American to receive the Prix de Flore. He is the author of two works of fiction, User and Pretending to Say No, and several works of nonfiction, including Toward the New Degeneracy. He is a translator of French literature who has worked as a journalist for numerous American and French publications, including The New York Times Magazine and Libération.