« Arrête avec tes mensonges » by Philippe Besson

There has been much talk in the English-speaking world about the recent BBC adaptation of Irish writer Sally Rooney’s phenomenally successful novel Normal People, which charts the different stages of a relationship between two people from different class backgrounds, Marianne and Connell, starting in secret in high school and continuing at Trinity College in Dublin.

The book is Philippe Besson’s Arrête avec Tes Mensonges, literally translated as “stop telling your lies,” but rendered rather beautifully and enigmatically by the American actress/writer Molly Ringwald as Lie with Me in her 2019 translation, which is now available in paperback. When it came out, I intended to write a review for Paris Update, but the experience of reading it was so visceral and affecting that I felt unable to distance myself enough to compose an objective and considered appraisal. This week, I am going to do something rather different and discuss a book that was only published three years ago. Over the last few weeks, I have been revisiting some classics of French literature and have tried to explain why and how they have had such an enduring legacy. Note to readers: You may choose to read this review of Philippe Besson’s Arrête avec Tes Mensonges (Lie with Me) here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article.

Philippe Besson and the cover of his novel Arrête avec Tes Mensonges (Lie with Me).

« Arrête avec tes mensonges » by Philippe Besson