Literary selection: eighties burglary...

Moreover, here too, he cheerfully mixes genres. He borrows from the codes of the detective novel as well as those of the coming-of-age novel or the romantic comedy. Not without evoking the life and work of Marcel Duchamp (an artist who fascinates him and whose life and work he knows like the back of his hand).

The plot revolves around a curious work of art, a sort of accordion book, a “Leporello,” containing sketches by famous 20th-century painters that Duchamp supposedly collected. A highly valuable object stolen by a gang of young thugs from Lyon during an impromptu burglary at the narrator’s workplace. Once the book is in their – illegal – possession, it must be appraised, authenticated, and a wealthy buyer found, not too fussy about its provenance…

Between smoky drinking sessions, fledgling love stories, and trips to Switzerland, the adventures and the troubles begin... In an atmosphere that deliciously recalls the carefree spirit of the 80s.

The Burglars – Fabio Viscogliosi, Actes Sud, 208 p., €18.50.