With his immense talent as a storyteller and his gift for bringing colorful and boisterous characters to life, the great Quebec writer Yves Beauchemin returns this fall with an exciting story, A stormy night. In the universe he created, an emergency doctor receives Philip, a 19-year-old patient who fell on an icy sidewalk. Little does he know that this meeting will change their lives a lot.
At the hospital, DR Romain Bellerose has a funny look: Philippe looks like his brother who died years ago. Little by little, everyone in the two’s entourage, near or far, strengthens the bond that binds them together in a strange way.
Photo courtesy of Éditions QuébecAmérique
Yves Beauchemin, a gifted writer with a subtle sense of humor, has no equal when it comes to describing people and situations, sometimes realistic, sometimes unbelievable, in which they go. His verses are wonderful.
Yves Beauchemin explains in an interview that the novel was born in winter.
“I decided to write a novel. But I’m not as young as I used to be… so I don’t know if I’m going to finish it. I’ve become a bit lazy,” he says.
To encourage himself, he got the idea to try for a scholarship… and the city of Longueuil offered one.
“I entered the contest for South Shore Writers and won. I said to myself: “I must write a novel! I have no other choice!” I worked very hard. I did about ten versions.
“At 82, we must also say that we no longer have the energy we had at 40. It’s true. But I made it to the end. So we’re putting the ship into the water… and hoping the storms aren’t too strong! »
A fascinating film
The first image that came to him was of a young man passed out on a sidewalk in the middle of winter. “I felt it was important. I mentioned it. It’s not a big event … but he ends up in the hospital, and it all started from there. He meets an emergency doctor and something happens between them. The whole novel is in that. His older brother who died at 15. Philip recalls. »
A stormy night A novel that talks about encounters: those that can be a series of synchronicities, that can change life paths, that can bring about changes and profound evolution. Good meetings… and less so.
“Philippe is from Joliet and ends up in Longueuil… and we meet the character of Pablo Michaud, a sort of petty criminal and his somewhat disturbing connections. A series of events arise from this encounter. Perfect events hard Sometimes. »
Open heart surgery
During the story, the doctor encounters something that Yves Beauchemin experienced.
“A few years ago, I had heart surgery. You know, to write a novel we borrow from everywhere. Sometimes we borrow from our own lives, from ourselves. I didn’t have to research open-heart surgery: in spite of myself, I had already done it. . It helped me.”
All activities take place in Longueuil.
“I chose Vieux-Longueuil, where I lived for 40 years, because it made my research easier! I know him like the back of my hand. »
He set out with these elements, which he calls “laziness” (“no clinical research, no locational research”).
“But for the rest, you still have to work! »
Extraction
« He was moving quickly along the pavement, growing colder and colder, when his foot slipped on the ice. He lost his balance and fell backwards, hitting his head hard on the concrete. Lying at full length, throwing his backpack on the side of the street, he was distraught and motionless. Violent convulsions twisted his occiput as he gasped, opening and closing his mouth.
He was less cold now. Time seemed to stand still.
Suddenly, a woman leaned over him:
– Did you hurt yourself, sir? »
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