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Description
Suzanne Leblanc's The Thought House of Philippa transposes a theory of individuality into a stunningly reflective, sensuous and frank philosophical novel. Setting the chapters in the various rooms of the house Ludwig Wittgenstein designed for his sister in Vienna, Leblanc's novel lays out P.'s intensely emotional and intellectually acute way of seeing the world and her place in it. Prompted by early isolation, P. moves towards the Great World of others and Nature, alienated from the everyday, yet devoted to a deeper connection, in an exploration that is profound and moving. Ideas crucial to Wittgenstein's work—limit, freedom, interior and exterior, self and world—echo and shift in Leblanc's precise, incantatory prose, propelled through the architecture. The distinct voices of the novel's four sections act as musical movements, constructed from repetition, variation and development of language, in alternating keys of austerity and splendour. The effect—a pure expression of the passion of clear thought, the adventure of solitude, and the beauty of uncompromising encounter—is utterly riveting. A sui generis experimental novel not to be missed.
Editorial Reviews
“Like much of Wittgenstein’s own writing, The Thought House of Philippa is spare and, in many ways, open-ended, suggestive rather than absolute…It is an interesting work of fiction, the language and presentation seductive in the way Wittgenstein’s own work can be.”—The Complete Review
“The lucid translation by poets Oana Avasilichioae & Ingrid Pam Dick clearly honors and brings out the musicality and thought-space of Leblanc’s challenging, austere prose.”—Drunken Boat
“Leblanc demands deep engagement but rewards in pure, surprisingly sensual, thought. A dense novel that challenges notions of what a novel can be.”—The Globe and Mail
“A novel of many ideas, Avasilichioaei and Dick’s translation keeps up with Leblanc’s ambitious emotional and didactic flourishes, while discovering in the abstraction of ‘discourse’ the most lovely music, making The Thought House of Philippa a singular, immersive, self-meditative experience."—All Lit Up
“Philippa is enigmatic, relevant, honest, and intuitive. Read her story.”—Nomadic Press
"The best Quebecois novel I read this year... The book's beauty rests in offering a series of reflections built on philosophical concepts, which, as the narrative progresses, take an aesthetic form that is both sculpted and boundless"—Goodreads
