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Romain Gary
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The Kites Hardcover – October 31, 2017

by Romain Gary (Author), Miranda Richmond Mouillot (Translator)
4.5 out of 5 stars 474 ratings
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New York Times Notable Book 2018

Romain Gary’s bittersweet final masterpiece, a novel of courage and resistance―never before in English

The Kites begins with a young boy, Ludo, coming of age on a small farm in Normandy under the care of his eccentric kite-making Uncle Ambrose. Ludo’s life changes the day he meets Lila, a girl from the aristocratic Polish family that owns the estate next door. In a single glance, Ludo falls in love forever; Lila, on the other hand, disappears back into the woods. And so begins Ludo’s adventure of longing, passion, and love for the elusive Lila, who begins to reciprocate his feelings just as Europe descends into World War II. After Germany invades Poland, Lila and her family go missing, and Ludo’s devotion to saving her from the Nazis becomes a journey to save his love, his loved ones, his country, and ultimately himself.

Filled with unforgettable characters who fling all they have into the fight to keep their hopes―and themselves―alive, The Kites is Romain Gary’s poetic call for resistance in whatever form it takes. A war hero himself, Gary embraced and fought for humanity in all its nuanced complexities, in the belief that a hero might be anyone who has the courage to love and hope.

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  1. Print length
    384 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    New Directions
  4. Publication date
    October 31, 2017
  5. Dimensions
    5.8 x 1.2 x 8.3 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0811226549
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0811226547
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Epic and empathetic."
― BBC

"The Kites is indeed a treasure, capable of accessing an enormous node of insight and almost-overwhelming beauty spliced with bittersweet candor. For Gary the novelist, it is not only love and fellow-feeling that unites us, but “the expression of suffering.” Perhaps it took the suffering that claimed Gary’s life for him to write as expansive a work of devout humanism as The Kites. Whatever the case, we are lucky to have it at last. We’re going to need it."
― Bomb

"Hero of the French Resistance, diplomat, and two-time recipient of the Prix Goncourt under two different pen names, Gary examines the fates of young love, naiveté, and idealism in his final novel, set in France during World War II and being published in English for the first time...A rich and layered love story that begins in innocence and moves through hardship toward a broad humanity."
― Kirkus (starred review)

"Unbelievably, two-time Prix Goncourt winner Gary’s luminous last work is only now appearing in English, but it was worth the wait... Gary uses limpid, accessible language (deftly translated) to deliver certain truths: memory can ground us or blind us; imagination, perhaps even a bit of craziness, is essential for survival; and we cannot easily be divided into heroes and villains. Smart and wonderfully life-affirming."
― Library Journal (starred review)

"Gary handles the emotional tightrope of espionage and the brutal reality of battle with clarity and precision, all captured magnificently by Mouillot’s translation...This is a wonderful translation of a French classic."
― Publishers Weekly

"What emerges, overwhelmingly, is the sense that, in Gary’s hands, fiction itself is a form of resistance."
― The Guardian

"Just before he killed himself, Gary published his last novel ― and one of his best ― “The Kites,” which has never before appeared in English but has now been given a stylish translation by Miranda Richmond Mouillot."
― The New York Times

"To figure out who Gary was and how he arrived at his intricate marriage of absurdist comedy and humane instruction, you have to turn to that memoir, “Promise at Dawn,” a matchlessly entertaining and psychologically persuasive book."
― Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker

"[A] hugely enjoyable read..."
― The Spectator

"Romain Gary has created a gallery of heroes who are willing to die for liberty but have to settle for the lesser victory of self-knowledge."
― Time

"Most delicious and extraordinary."
― James Laughlin

"What a gold mine!"
― Jean-Paul Sartre

About the Author

Romain Gary (1914–1980) was born Roman Kacew in Vilnius to a family of Lithuanian Jews. He changed his name when he fled Nazi-occupied France to fight for the British as an RAF pilot. He wrote under several pen names and is the only writer to have received the Prix Goncourt twice. A diplomat and filmmaker, Gary was married to the American actress Jean Seberg. He died in Paris in 1980 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Miranda Richmond Mouillot is a writer and translator and the author of A Fifty-Year Silence: Love, War, and a Ruined House in France. She won a PEN/Heim Translation Award for The Kites.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ New Directions; First Edition (October 31, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0811226549
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0811226547
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.8 x 1.2 x 8.3 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 474 ratings

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Romain Gary

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
474 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find this book to be an incredible piece of writing, with one noting how each sentence is a jewel. Moreover, the ongoing love story is charming, and one customer describes how the author weaves an interesting tale from World War II. Additionally, customers appreciate the character development and writing style, with one mentioning how easy it is to imagine the landscape.

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12 customers mention "Readability"12 positive0 negative

Customers find the book highly readable, describing it as a breathtaking and incredible piece of writing with great translation, and one customer notes that the descriptions maintain their impact.

"44 years later the moving plots and descriptions have not lost their impact ...." Read more

"...It's concerned with the human spirit and the nearly impossible effort to keep it alive and and sane in the face of humanity's darkness...." Read more

"...Romain Gary gives us a mesmerizing perspective on life, love, loss, despair, and happiness, wrapped up in the context of a love affair during one of..." Read more

"Wonderful piece of literature about a young man with an eccentric but loving family in a small village in Normandy, in love with Lila through the..." Read more

8 customers mention "Romance"8 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the romance in the book, finding the ongoing love story charming, with one customer noting how the writer weaves an interesting tale from World War II.

"The best fiction I've read in a long time. Having visited Normandy, it was easy to imagine the landscape and the people who experienced WW II...." Read more

"...Romain Gary gives us a mesmerizing perspective on life, love, loss, despair, and happiness, wrapped up in the context of a love affair during one of..." Read more

"...The translation is superb. There are timeless passages that are as relevant today as when they were written...." Read more

"...The kite theme gave it almost a storybook structure. The ongoing love story was charming. I consider it almost more than historical fiction." Read more

5 customers mention "Writing style"5 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the writing style of the book, describing it as magnificent, with one customer noting how easy it is to imagine the landscape.

"...Having visited Normandy, it was easy to imagine the landscape and the people who experienced WW II. Reminders are everywhere in that region...." Read more

"...There are a breadth of characters here, each one charming, unusual, touching...." Read more

"Gary has a style that grabs the reader and does not let go until the last word. The translation is superb...." Read more

"C'est magnifique." Read more

3 customers mention "Character development"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the characters in the book interesting.

"...minimizes this period of history, but manages to make it playful, human, and full of the gravity it deserves, all at the same time." Read more

"...The characters themselves are interesting and it does have a different take on your typical World War perspective but you still are somehow left..." Read more

"...Unbelievably moving. Flawless character descriptions and a great translation makes this classic novel unforgettable." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • HR n FW
    5.0 out of 5 stars more topical in 2024 than in 1980
    Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    44 years later the moving plots and descriptions have not lost their impact . In fact this tome is more pertinent to the world of 2024 than 1980 when there were so many more people alive that had direct memory of these events. I wish that this would be rediscovered in today’s world as there is much wisdom here coming from a master writer about a subject that he was intimately familiar with. The temptation to devour this work for the sensation should be resisted so that the nuanced themes and references can be savored ( like any fine meal )
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  • Sharon Lee
    5.0 out of 5 stars Everything I would hope for in a book about the French Resistance
    Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    The best fiction I've read in a long time. Having visited Normandy, it was easy to imagine the landscape and the people who experienced WW II. Reminders are everywhere in that region. Gratitude, as well, from the people of the region toward Americans, the Brits and Canadians.

    But this story is not about conquering heroes in that sense. It's concerned with the human spirit and the nearly impossible effort to keep it alive and and sane in the face of humanity's darkness. It's about the need to have something greater than we are to which we devote ourselves. Idealism, love, morality--these are weapons in the face of evil. It brings the large story of World War II down to the human level of friends and neighbors and the cost of survival. The kites represent the yearning and hope in every human heart to live as individuals, free to express one's gifts and allow one's spirit to soar.

    As an aside, the author was a fighter pilot himself, lending an even greater depth to the words he wrote.
    7 people found this helpful
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  • Shel
    4.0 out of 5 stars A rewarding read
    Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2018
    Character drives this novel, set in a small town in Normandy and Poland before and during WW II. A math genius with a perfect memory, his uncle, a celebrated maker of imaginative kites, the owner and chef of a gourmand restaurant, an impulsive, sensual young woman, even a Jewish Madame. The math wizard and the madame conceal their identities, while working in the resistance. The chef's resistance is to preserve flaunt French gastronomy. The characters engage the reader and cling to the end. Impulsive conduct if not the rule, is no exception. The writing is fluid, the plot flows, and the story is compelling. It is an original contribution to the genre. Sheldon Greene is a novelist.
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  • Benjamin Gutman
    5.0 out of 5 stars An incredible and deeply personal work
    Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    I generally don't write reviews, but this is the exception that proves the rule. This is the first work that I have read by Gary, and it was a breathtaking read. Romain Gary gives us a mesmerizing perspective on life, love, loss, despair, and happiness, wrapped up in the context of a love affair during one of the most horrible periods of modern history. What is even more interesting is how well Gary weaves in 'real' people and events, such as Pastor André Trocmé and Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, all while pursuing the theme of using memory and imagination as a weapon against oppression. Gary contemplates the human condition, questioning if inhumanity, as shown by Nazis and even by the French, is an integral part of being human. While I have not read the work in the original French, Mouillot's translation flowed organically. High praise for both the author and translator.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Susan Mills
    5.0 out of 5 stars Playful, serious, profound, incredible piece of writing
    Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2022
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    Wonderful piece of literature about a young man with an eccentric but loving family in a small village in Normandy, in love with Lila through the ordeal of World War II and the French Resistance. Sadly, I had not heard of this author, who apparently is renowned in France. The writing itself is enough to carry the reader along to the end. Each sentence is a jewel.

    It is clear that Gary knows what he’s talking about in covering the war and the resistance. That in itself was fascinating in its detail and its humanity. There are a breadth of characters here, each one charming, unusual, touching. The theme of the kites runs throughout and has a complexity of meanings, many of them quite profound. The book never minimizes this period of history, but manages to make it playful, human, and full of the gravity it deserves, all at the same time.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Tom Frankel
    5.0 out of 5 stars A “can’t put it down” read
    Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Gary has a style that grabs the reader and does not let go until the last word. The translation is superb. There are timeless passages that are as relevant today as when they were written. Even though the end is somewhat predictable, getting there was joyous. This is simply a beautiful and moving story.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • wantoun
    3.0 out of 5 stars A nice read, but not one that catches you
    Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    I felt the style somehow lacking in getting me to stick with the book, although I did to know what happens to the characters out or curiosity.

    The characters themselves are interesting and it does have a different take on your typical World War perspective but you still are somehow left wanting more in terms of juice!
    One person found this helpful
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  • Joanna
    4.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading...
    Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2018
    I admit that many ...many times I wanted just to leave this book...I couldn't get in the story...but it really gets much better in the second half...and at the end surprisingly I liked it.Very well written World war II story ,partially it is a love story .Thanks to Goodreads I won this book ....Not bad....not bad at all...
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Ken
    3.0 out of 5 stars fair purchase
    Reviewed in Canada on January 8, 2020
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    lonf delivery time
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  • Anon
    5.0 out of 5 stars A truly wonderful book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 1, 2018
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    This is a quite exceptional book. It is wonderfully well written; the story is beautifully told. As a work of historical fiction, it is amongst the very best. The pace of the book is consistent, the characters are alive and warm. The full kaleidoscope of humanity, from saintly to evil is represented in this book but the complexities and nuances of human emotion and response are woven in and integral to the story. Romain Gary committed suicide shortly after the publication of this book; what an epitaph.
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  • Gorchkov
    5.0 out of 5 stars Ich habe nicht gelesen
    Reviewed in Germany on February 7, 2024
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    Meine Tochter ist zufrieden
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  • D. C. M. Bell
    5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful slow burn novel
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 11, 2018
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    A clever beautifully written novel which takes a while to ‘ declare Its hand ‘ but does so very effectively. It’s a whole new way of looking at the essence of France , the Resistance and the war. Memorable.
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  • smudge
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good Tead
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 13, 2018
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    Member of as book club and it was a good read. Nothing more to say!
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