143 - CÉLINE, Louis-Ferdinand—Letter to the writer Evelyne Pollet

CÉLINE, Louis-Ferdinand—Letter to the writer Evelyne Pollet The Antwerp-based novelist Evelyne Pollet sent her a manuscript: “I read your story right away. I don’t dare say anything. I don’t know. We all have a tendency to judge based on our own biases. I don’t like short stories in general. They don’t allow for judgment. You strike me as resilient and passionate. Here are elements of a rich and expansive scope. I’ll be waiting for your novel. […] You also need to work harder; don’t imagine that you’ve told a story or conveyed what you’ve merely felt. I have no prejudice against the Belgian spirit. Being Flemish on my father’s side and thoroughly Brughelian by instinct, I would find it hard not to lean entirely toward the North.” 2 pages, in-4. [March 1933]. Evelyne Pollet (1905–2005) was a French-speaking Belgian writer and journalist (from Antwerp) who published, from 1926 to 1964, eight novels and collections of short stories, and contributed to several Belgian newspapers and magazines; beginning in 1955, she worked for Belgian Radio. Through marriage, she became the sister-in-law of the writer Marie Gevers. In 1926, at the age of 21, she published her first novel, titled *La Bouée*. In January 1933, deeply moved by reading *Le Voyage*, she wrote to Céline, who replied promising to visit Antwerp. The French author would in fact visit there ten times (from 1933 to 1941). An intimate relationship (they very quickly became lovers) developed between them, which lasted until 1939. The letters presented here cover this period. Pollet would later recount her affair with Céline in fictional form in a novel published in 1956 titled *Escaliers*. In total, Evelyne Pollet preserved 61 letters from Céline, which were published in their entirety in *Cahier Céline* No. 5 in October 1979. The 18 letters for sale, totaling 35 pages, are part of this collection: they thus represent nearly one-third of Céline’s entire correspondence. They come directly from the Antwerp-based writer. These letters reflect most of Céline’s recurring concerns: fear of the future, an obsession with material security, her attachment to Brueghel, physical perfection, Flanders, and allusions to various current events—some of which she would later expand upon in her pamphlets, such as “torture cities” or the disastrous conditions of the publishing industry and literature. In addition to the advice Céline liked to offer his correspondent, the letters also contain numerous literary recommendations. Regardless of his reservations about women’s literature, he never sought to thwart his correspondent’s literary aspirations, forwarding several manuscripts and interceding with Denoël to have him publish her work—which he ultimately did in 1942 with the novel *Primevères*, published in Belgium the following year under the title *Corps à corps*. However, he repeatedly advised her to pursue a parallel career in journalism, which could improve her precarious financial situation—advice she would, in fact, follow.