The Weeping Angel

Like the fictitious hero of this book, Louis-Paul Béguin was born in Amiens, France.

On the death of his grandmother, Réni de Boves revisits Samara, the city of his birth. Familiar surroundings and sights, especially the famous statue of the Weeping Angel in the cathedral, bring back a flood of memories. German-occupied northern France, a revealing meeting with former schoolmate in post-war Paris. Emigrating to the United States, Réni has a succession of bizarre experiences in New York. In rural Georgia, working at a restaurant, he comes face to face with the harsh realities of racial segregation during the 1950s. After a decade of nomadic existence, playing piano in bars across the U.S., he becomes a teacher in Toronto. A short-lived marriage founders when his wife Jennifer miscarries. After a strange, brief, romantic liaison in Quebec City, Réni settles in Montreal, where he finally feels secure and at home. On the death of his beloved grandmother, he receives a letter, along with a family talisman; a little medallion of the Weeping Angel. In the letter, long-hidden family secrets are revealed, and mysterious, disquieting events that occurred during the Occupation are explained.