The First Quarter of the Moon

Ian C. Nelson is assistant director of libraries at the University of
Saskatchewan and président, La Troupe du Jour, Regina Summer Stage.

The First Quarter of the Moon extends far beyond being merely the second
instalment of what has been called “Tremblay’s autobiographical
fiction.” This particular jewel, polished in its English version again
by the award-winning Sheila Fischman, is a fusion of reality and
imagination, portraiture and poetry. It begins with the snapshot of the
arrival of summer; a moment and a day in the life of two cousins, Marcel
and the fat woman’s son. The setting is of course Fabre Street, and
the reading pleasure is nothing less than exquisite. Even the detail of
leaving the “fat woman’s son” unnamed through the récit is a sign
of the profound intimacy that Tremblay exploits in his characters and
has achieved with his public.

At the end of Tremblay’s career one will likely be able to sew
together all his plays and novels and discover that we have been
privileged to read the works of a veritable Québécois Marcel Proust.