Kolkhoz by Emmanuel Carrère review – intricate portrait of an elite French family

Emmanuel Carrère's 400-page memoir, "Kolkhoz," translated into English by John Lambert, offers an intricate and deeply personal portrait of his elite French family, serving as a profound homage to his parents, Hélène and Louis Carrère, and the unlikely tapestry of their shared history. The impetus for this extensive work was the death of his mother, Hélène, in 2023 at the age of 94. Hélène occupied the prestigious and influential position of "perpetual secretary" of the Académie Française, a role that effectively placed her at the helm of this venerable French literary institution. Her memorial service, held at the historic Les Invalides in Paris, was a significant event, attended by 200 notable figures, including President Emmanuel Macron, underscoring Hélène's standing. Emmanuel's father, Louis, was also present, though his participation was limited by his presence in a wheelchair and a diminished awareness of his surroundings. The memoir also functions as a significant act of reparation towards Hélène, a figure Emmanuel deeply admired and worshipped as a child, but with whom he later experienced estrangement due to his decision to publish a book she had explicitly forbidden him to write. Hélène's own formative years were marked by a stark contrast to her later eminence, having grown up in stateless poverty in Paris. Her paternal lineage traces back to Georges Zourabichvili, whose parents were refugees who fled Georgia in 1921, seeking a new life. Her maternal side, through Nathalie von Pelken, hailed from the remnants of the Russian aristocracy. Nathalie's childhood, despite the backdrop of "the magical world of the fallen Russian aristocracy," was characterized by privilege, evidenced by her having six governesses, one for each day of the week except Sunday. However, this privileged world was fraught with hardship, particularly after Georges Zourabichvili disappeared in 1944. He was tragically murdered by partisans, with accusations of Nazi collaboration casting a dark shadow over his fate. At the time of her father's violent death, Hélène was a mere 15 years old, and she bore the heavy burden of attempting, unsuccessfully, to conceal the devastating truth about his demise from her younger brother, Nicolas. The narrative of "Kolkhoz" thus meticulously unearths a layered and often tumultuous history, encompassing the shadows of the Nazi era, the profound complexities and dislocations of Russian émigré life, and the esteemed, almost insular, world of the Académie Française. Through this exploration, Carrère delves into the interwoven destinies of his parents and their ancestors, revealing a rich and intricate family saga.