The Holy Innocents

The Holy Innocents takes place in Paris during 1968 and follows three young film devotees: Matthew, an American student, and French twins Guillaume and Danielle. Set against the backdrop of social upheaval, the trio bonds over their shared passion for cinema at the Cinémathèque Française. When the Cinémathèque closes during a period of national unrest, the three retreat into their own private world at the twins' family apartment. Their parents' absence allows them to create an isolated existence centered around film culture and elaborate games. The relationships between Matthew and the twins grow complex as boundaries blur and their isolation from the outside world intensifies. Their dynamic exists in stark contrast to the political turbulence of 1968 Paris. The novel explores themes of youth, obsession, and willing exile from society, presenting the characters as figures suspended between innocence and experience. Their cinematic obsession serves as both escape and prison.

Readers often describe this book as an homage to Cocteau's "Les Enfants Terribles" with elements borrowed from Bertolucci's film "The Dreamers." Positive reviews highlight: - Atmospheric depiction of 1968 Paris - Complex sibling relationship dynamics - Rich cultural references to cinema and literature - Poetic prose style Common criticisms: - Plot moves too slowly - Characters can seem pretentious and unlikeable - Some find it derivative of its source material - Sexual content makes some readers uncomfortable Ratings across platforms: Goodreads: 3.7/5 (1,200+ ratings) Amazon: 3.9/5 (80+ ratings) Sample reader comments: "Beautiful writing but insufferably self-conscious characters" - Goodreads reviewer "Captures teenage obsession perfectly" - Amazon reviewer "Too much style over substance" - LibraryThing review "The Paris setting feels authentic but the plot meanders" - BookBrowse member

The Dreamers by Bernardo Bertolucci This novel traces three young film lovers in 1960s Paris who retreat into a sensual private world during student protests.

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• The novel was adapted into a film titled "The Dreamers" (2003), directed by Bernardo Bertolucci and starring Eva Green in her breakthrough role • The book's setting coincides with the real-life closure of the Cinémathèque Française in 1968, which sparked protests led by prominent filmmakers including François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard • Gilbert Adair personally translated the novel into French, making him one of few authors to translate their own work between English and French • The story's inspiration, Jean Cocteau's "Les Enfants Terribles" (1929), was itself adapted into both a film and an opera, showing the intertwining of literature and cinema that Adair explores • The student protests of May 1968 in Paris, which form the novel's backdrop, began at the University of Nanterre and eventually led to a nationwide general strike involving 11 million workers