Tartarin lives in Tarascon, a small village in the heart of Provence. He only dreams of glorious achievements and adventures but has never left his house! He tells the villagers about his fantasies of being an intrepid adventurer and an epic hero. He is a true southern Don Quixote, and he is finally caught in his own trap: the whole village urges him to go to Algeria to hunt the lion. Between comicality and humour, Alphonse Daudet (1840-1897) tells us with tenderness and humour the adventures of this character, who has since become one of the greatest comic types in French literature. Published in 1872, this little novel will earn its author a bad reputation in Tarascon and in Provence, his native land! On the other hand, it quickly became a timeless classic of French literature.

It was an interesting read, and we talked a lot about this colorful character that is both a funny but questionable stereotype and a carnavalesque example of masculinity. From Provence to Algeria, we travelled through the ambiguous France of the late 19th century, between regional folklore and the illusion of a grandiose colonization.

We read this book in the winter of 2021.