About the book
WINNER OF THE 2022 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE
\"Happening recounts what it was like to be a young woman whose life changed — and world ominously narrowed — in 1963 with an unwanted pregnancy. . . . It feels urgently of the moment.\"
--The New York Times
In 1963, Annie Ernaux, 23 and unattached, realizes she is pregnant. Shame arises in her like a plague: Understanding that her pregnancy will mark her and her family as social failures, she knows she cannot keep that child.
This is the story, written forty years later, of a trauma Ernaux never overcame. In a France where abortion was illegal, she attempted, in vain, to self-administer the abortion with a knitting needle. Fearful and desperate, she finally located an abortionist, and ends up in a hospital emergency ward where she nearly dies.
In Happening, Ernaux sifts through her memories and her journal entries dating from those days. Clearly, cleanly, she gleans the meanings of her experience.
Now an award-winning film by Audrey Diwan
Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival
Official Selection of the Sundance Film Festival
Editions of Happening
- Hardcover
- ISBN 9781583222560
- Paperback
- ISBN 9781609809485
- EBook
- ISBN 9781609802264
Read an Excerpt
WINNER OF THE 2022 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE
\"Happening recounts what it was like to be a young woman whose life changed — and world ominously narrowed — in 1963 with an unwanted pregnancy. . . . It feels urgently of the moment.\"
--The New York Times
In 1963, Annie Ernaux, 23 and unattached, realizes she is pregnant. Shame arises in her like a plague: Understanding that her pregnancy will mark her and her family as social failures, she knows she cannot keep that child.
This is the story, written forty years later, of a trauma Ernaux never overcame. In a France where abortion was illegal, she attempted, in vain, to self-administer the abortion with a knitting needle. Fearful and desperate, she finally located an abortionist, and ends up in a hospital emergency ward where she nearly dies.
In Happening, Ernaux sifts through her memories and her journal entries dating from those days. Clearly, cleanly, she gleans the meanings of her experience.
Now an award-winning film by Audrey Diwan
Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival
Official Selection of the Sundance Film Festival
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Happening about?
WINNER OF THE 2022 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE
\"Happening recounts what it was like to be a young woman whose life changed — and world ominously narrowed — in 1963 with an unwanted pregnancy. . . . It feels urgently of the moment.\"
--The New York Times
In 1963, Annie Ernaux, 23 and unattached, realizes she is pregnant. Shame arises in her like a plague: Understanding that her pregnancy will mark her and her family as social failures, she knows she cannot keep that child.
This is the story, written forty years later, of a trauma Ernaux never overcame. In a France where abortion was illegal, she attempted, in vain, to self-administer the abortion with a knitting needle. Fearful and desperate, she finally located an abortionist, and ends up in a hospital emergency ward where she nearly dies.
In Happening, Ernaux sifts through her memories and her journal entries dating from those days. Clearly, cleanly, she gleans the meanings of her experience.
Now an award-winning film by Audrey Diwan
Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival
Official Selection of the Sundance Film Festival
What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Happening?
Biography, Literature and Literary studies > Biography and non-fiction prose > Memoirs
Where can I read a sample of Happening?
You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9781583222560
Who is/are the Author/s of the book Happening?
Annie Ernaux
What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?
Happening is available as hardcover(ISBN 9781583222560) and paperback(ISBN 9781609809485) and ebook(ISBN 9781609802264)
Where can I buy Happening online or support local independent bookshops?
You can buy Happening from below
Where can I buy Happening?