Fault Lines by Nancy Huston (Book Analysis)

This practical and insightful reading guide offers a complete summary and analysis of Fault Lines by Nancy Huston. It provides a thorough exploration of the novel’s plot, characters and main themes, including in particular childhood, the influence of heritage and the importance of memory. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.

This clear and detailed 27-page reading guide is structured as follows:

• Biography of Nancy Huston
• Presentation of Fault Lines
• Summary of Fault Lines
• Character study
  • Erra/Klarysa/Kristina
  • Sadie
  • Aron
  • Randall
  • Sol
• Analysis of Fault Lines
  • A significant title
  • Family
  • Nazi Germany and children’s camps

About Fault Lines

Fault Lines was published in English in 2007, a year after the French version Lignes de faille. It tells the story of four children from different generations of the same family and spans a period of several decades, from Germany under the Third Reich to the USA in the aftermath of 9/11. Huston uses their story to explore the themes of childhood, memory and origins, and to demonstrate the impossibility of childhood innocence in the face of the past, family heritage and history. Fault Lines won the Prix Femina, a French literary award with an all-female jury, in 2006.

About Nancy Huston

Nancy Huston is a French Canadian novelist, essayist, musician and women’s rights activist. She writes mainly in French, and generally translates her own books into English. Her writing often deals with the themes of lines of descent, family and historical heritage, and music is a great source of inspiration to her. Her best-known works include Plainsong, published in 1993, and The Mark of the Angel, a critically acclaimed 1998 novel. Huston has won a number of awards, including the Canadian Governor General’s Award for Fiction in French and the French literary award the Prix Goncourt des Lycéens.