The Character of Rain

2000 short novel by Amélie Nothomb

The Character of Rain

First edition

Author| Amélie Nothomb
Original title| Métaphysique des tubes
Translator| Timothy Bent
Language| French
Genre| Novel
Publisher| Éditions Albin Michel

Publication date

| 2000
Publication place| France

Published in English

| 2002
Media type| print
Pages| 171
ISBN| 978-0312302481

The Character of Rain (French: Métaphysique des tubes) is a 2000 short novel by the Belgian author Amélie Nothomb originally written in French. The English translated edition of the novel was published by Faber and Faber.[1][2][3][4]

The zen gardens that fascinate Amélie

## Plot

[edit]

The novel, apparently autobiographical, describes the world as discovered and seen by a three-year-old child born in Japan to a Belgian family. It encompasses the themes of self-awareness, language acquisition, bilingualism, and developmental psychology.

The Japanese believe that until the age of three, children, whether Japanese or not, are gods, each one an okosama, or "lord child." On their third birthday, they fall from grace and join the rest of the human race. The narrator of the novel has spent the first two and a half years of her life in a nearly vegetative state until she is jolted out of her plant-like, tube-like state, and gains a peculiar but complete awareness of the world around her. Her parents see how their 'plant' becomes a child and discover that she can move. Their enthusiasm does not last long though, because their daughter is now very active. She screams all day and gets tantrums as if she must catch up on the time she lost as a 'plant'. Only when she discovers the existence of pleasure by eating white chocolate she comes to a quiet. Most fascinating to the narrator is the discovery of water in oceans, seas, pools, puddles, streams, ponds, and, rain - one meaning of the Japanese character for her name and a symbol of her amphibious life. However, she also discovers the language, Japanese, the pond with carp, time, and death. This discovery despairs her to the point of attempting suicide, but she is rescued from drowning in the pond with the carp.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "The Character of Rain (Métaphysique des tubes) - Amélie Nothomb". Complete Review. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
2. ^ Eder, Richard (2002-04-17). "BOOKS OF THE TIMES; A Baby With Opinions on Everything". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
3. ^ "The Character of Rain". Kirkus Reviews. 2002-03-15. Retrieved 2024-08-13.
4. ^ Wilkins, Kate (2013-07-29). "Getting into new French fiction: 'The Character of Rain' by Amélie Nothomb". My French Life™ - Ma Vie Française®. Retrieved 2024-08-13.

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Amélie Nothomb

Novels|

* Hygiène de l'assassin (1992)
* Le Sabotage amoureux (1993)
* Les Catilinaires (1995)
* Péplum (1996)
* Attentat (1997)
* Mercure (1998)
* Stupeur et tremblements (1999)
* Métaphysique des tubes (2000)
* Cosmétique de l'ennemi (2001)
* Robert des noms propres (2002)
* Antéchrista (2003)
* Biographie de la faim (2004)
* Acide sulfurique (2005)
* Journal d'Hirondelle (2006)
* Ni d'Eve, ni d'Adam (2007)
* Le Fait du prince (2008)
* Le Voyage d'Hiver (2009)
* Une forme de vie (2010)
* Tuer le père (2011)
* Barbe bleue (2012)
* La nostalgie heureuse (2013)
* Petronille (2014)
* Le Crime du comte Neville (2015)
* Riquet à la houppe (2016)
* Strike your Heart (2017)
* Les prénoms épicènes (2018)
* Soif (2019)
* Les aérostats (2020)
* Premier sang (2021)
* Le Livre des soeurs (2022)

Plays|

* Les Combustibles (1994)

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

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* United States
* France
* BnF data

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