Romain Gary biography

Dominique Bona – Romain Gary, biography.

After reading “Promise at Dawn”, I was left on ice for a while – in this autobiographical novel, the story ends at about World War II. And to find out how the life of a writer unfolded was extremely curious. Fortunately, a biography of Romain Gary written in 1987, recently was translated into Lithuanian which helped to put together a mosaic of the writer’s life.

Admittedly, reading an autobiography is much more enjoyable than a biography. After reading “Promise at Dawn”, adorned with the writer’s ingenuity, another man’s work, no matter how professionally written, is like food without spices.

I read and thought about the tremendous work Dominique Bona had to do to put out the life path of Romain Gary in such detail. However, at the same time, I dreamed that it would be possible to learn not only the facts but also more about what lies behind them.

I could not say that the work answered all the questions posed by the colorful and controversial life of the writer, perhaps only creating a clear structure, frame, and shelves on which I will later lay out the results of further acquaintance with the writer’s work.

I am happy to have read Gary’s biography, I have to admit that it was a bit more complicated reading when it comes to concentration and empathy. But it still caused a lot of thought, gave a lot of color to the picture of Gary that I have drawn in my head and intrigued by some unread works. And for the hard-working fans of Gary’s work, it’s a real pleasure. 

© Fortune, 2020

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