A Ladder to the Sky

J'ai découvert John Boyne il y a quelques années avec son roman jeunesse The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (Le garçon en pyjama rayé en VF). Plus récemment, j'avais été emballé par The Heart's Invisible Furies, le magnifique récit de la vie d'un homosexuel irlandais, de son enfance jusqu'à la fin de sa vie. J'ai lu ce roman il y a un an environ et je m'étais dit que je surveillerai les prochaines publications de cet auteur talentueux.

Au début de l'année, j'ai appris la sortie prévue cet été de son nouveau roman A Ladder to the Sky, dont le synopsis m'a tout de suite donné envie de le lire :

A psychological drama of cat and mouse, A Ladder to the Sky shows how easy it is to achieve the world if you are prepared to sacrifice your soul.

If you look hard enough, you can find stories pretty much anywhere. They don't even have to be your own. Or so would-be writer Maurice Swift decides very early on in his career.

A chance encounter in a Berlin hotel with celebrated novelist Erich Ackermann gives him an opportunity to ingratiate himself with someone more powerful than him. For Erich is lonely, and he has a story to tell. Whether or not he should do so is another matter entirely.

Once Maurice has made his name, he sets off in pursuit of other people's stories. He doesn't care where he finds them – or to whom they belong – as long as they help him rise to the top.

Stories will make him famous but they will also make him beg, borrow and steal. They may even make him do worse.