Silk

Hervé Joncour, a French merchant in the mid-19th century, lives a seemingly idyllic life with his wife Hélène in Lavilledieu. His profession requires him to travel across Europe to procure silkworm eggs. However, a devastating disease outbreak compels him to seek out a new, uninfected source, leading him to embark on perilous, clandestine journeys to Japan – a country then largely closed off to foreigners. During his visits, he encounters a mysterious concubine of a local lord, a woman with whom he shares an intense, unspoken connection that transcends language and physical touch. Their silent exchanges, facilitated by fleeting glances and a single, translated letter, ignite a profound obsession within Hervé. Each return to France brings him back to Hélène, yet his heart and mind remain captivated by the enigmatic Japanese woman. Baricco’s poetic novella explores themes of longing, memory, and the powerful, enduring impact of an ethereal love that exists beyond conventional boundaries, forever altering the course of Hervé's quiet existence.