Photo by Amy Beth Bennett

Swiss author tells about travel encounters in reading

Instead of beginning an author reading with personal information such as date born, educational background and the number of books, Swiss author Corinne Desarzens Tuesday opened a reading of her several books by giving an alphabet of diverse ideas, ranging from "M" for the Irish political revolutionary Michael Collins and "P" for passion.

"I prefer to begin like this because I find things I have seen and places I have been more interesting," Desarzens said.

A former journalist for a daily newspaper in Switzerland, Desarzens divided the reading with three excerpts from her early books.

In "Notebook from Madagascar," a 1990 collection of 11 short stories set in the isolated African island nation, Desarzens spoke about her various traveling experiences.

"The stories deal with slices of life in Madagascar, like how they wrap the dead, the language, and a person I met over there," she said.

The second excerpt came from the 1994 book "Aubeterre," a farm located in regional Switzerland where the author lived for seven years.

The third reading dealt with a Romanian lady who became the first female auctioneer in Switzerland and whose three husbands all mysteriously perished inside a car.

"She asked me to write an article about paintings in her gallery, but she deviated from the subject when she started talking about her three deceased husbands from England, France and Egypt," Desarzens said.

"It was very intriguing, and I wanted to know more, because when they died, a car was always involved," she said.

The author also read a paragraph that pertains to her appreciation of 2,000 black and white pictures taken by a photographer in Ireland.

"They were quite different but really beautiful and eloquent, so I wrote something that balanced the picture by adding a little humor," Desarzens said. She also revealed her passion for the panoramic beauty of Ireland by discussing her first book "Beware of the Sceneries," which was published in 1988.

The book discusses the history of the Irish estate Glenveigh, which was converted into a national park by the Irish government.

Her current novel "Found Bread," another short-story anthology published last year, was inspired by the author's travels to an Italian home owned by a couple who wrote children's books but never had a child of their own.

According to Desarzens, the childless couple decided to open a foundation, inviting artists and musicians to stay in their home.

"When I went to their house, there was a strong presence," Desarzens said. "That is why I decided to write things about the house."

Tamie Balooch, a fourth-year French major, said she is unfamiliar with Desarzens' works, but admitted that Tuesday's reading was a fine introduction to the Swiss author's writings.

"She looks at things differently and she helps open your mind to different perspectives. That's why I was able to relate to her," she said.

The reading was presented by the Cal State Long Beach Romance, German, Russian Languages and Literature department and funded by Pro Helvetia, the Arts Council of Switzerland, in collaboration with the Consulate General of Switzerland in Los Angeles.