Les heures longues, 1914-1917

A summer day on the breezy coast of Saint‑Malo erupts into chaos as the first summons of total mobilization sounds through the town. Children in red swimsuits pause, women burst into frantic motion, and the streets fill with a chorus of drums, whistles, and nervous shouts. The narrator captures the surreal juxtaposition of sun‑lit cliffs and the looming shadow of war, describing how ordinary market sellers and a lone cyclist become bearers of grim news about rationing and shortages.

Amid the frenzy, the writer reflects on the fleeting sense of normalcy that still clings to the sea’s calm surface, while memories of distant Paris—gray, restless, and charged with anxiety— linger in the background. The opening pages blend vivid sensory detail with a quiet, almost dream‑like contemplation of how quickly a peaceful vacation can transform into the first, bewildering hours of a conflict that will reshape lives for years to come.