"But seriously, we agree, is it too boring to be confined at home with your family (even if you love it)? "We are in the spring of 2020 and Esther, 15, is discovering, like all French teenagers, the joys of confinement. This life turned upside down by the virus, at the time of the first flirtations, the first evenings and the cigarettes exchanged, Riad Sattouf tells it in the 6th volume of “Cahiers d'Esther”, to be published this Thursday, the other successful series from the author of "The Arab of the Future". Since 2015, the designer has been collecting, week after week, year after year, the testimony of the daughter of a couple of friends to draw this chronicle, just a bit scripted, of our time.
From the first alerts concerning the "Chinese virus" spotted by his brother on the Internet to the reopening of cafes, through the anxieties of a father with hypochondriac tendencies and college lessons in video, this new album reveals, always with humor, Esther's moods during this very special year.
Both confidant and author, Riad Sattouf tells us how he lived it with her.
Without Esther, did you think you would have made a Covid album?
RIAD SATTOUF.
No, probably not.
But as we discuss each week, that I tell about his daily life, the subject has necessarily imposed itself.
Esther did not imagine the year of her 15th birthday at all like this: she was very enthusiastic, full of projects.
And then the Covid arrived and completely changed his daily life ... I realized, with this album, to what extent this particular period has upset human relationships, social relationships among young people.
It is a historic moment.
At the very beginning, when we start talking about the virus in China, how does she react?
She is absolutely not interested in the subject!
She will start to worry about it when it directly affects her life.
Do you feel stressed afterwards?
Not really.
Esther quickly realized that, being a teenager, she was not risking much.
What will worry him quickly are the reactions of those close to him, in particular his father's anxieties.
She is afraid for her parents.
She realizes that she has responsibilities in relation to others.
She also has fears because we can't find masks at the beginning.
To read also "The Arab of the future" by Riad Sattouf: "I wanted to tell my secret"
She still has a great moment of joy: the closing of the college ...
Yes, for her it's a wonderful gift
(laughs…)
She told me that one of her friends had even put Macron's photo as a wallpaper on her mobile!
I recently heard that he is the favorite politician of young people.
I think it comes from there ...
She has a strange dream of a world of tomorrow… where chocolate is gone forever!
It's still a sign of anxiety, isn't it?
Without a doubt.
It was a time when this question really arose, for everyone: will we ever find the world before?
It is necessarily scary.
At home, she begins to participate more in household chores, to take care of her little brother.
Wasn't she moaning?
No, she did it quite naturally.
Everyone had to take their part in this particular moment of the first confinement.
It was also a realization that we had to help and protect those we love.
She takes responsibility.
Yes but, quickly, being confined with her family, it really weighs on her ...
It's true, she couldn't take it anymore!
Initially, she was very happy not to go to college anymore.
And then he started to miss his friends.
It's also part of an awareness, I think: you can't live without seeing people, those you love.
She is finally becoming very reasonable ...
That is true.
It's funny because when we started she was ten years old, and she was a real little fury.
She calmed down a bit.
She doesn't have the rebellious side of some teens at all.
He is a very enthusiastic, very positive person.
This is why, I think, she did not experience this period too badly.
She has a friend who had completely disappeared from college… What I'm saying is the Covid seen by Esther, not by all the teenagers.
Will this period permanently mark this generation?
Necessarily.
But frankly, I still have a hard time seeing how and how much.
It really changed their lives… And I tell myself more and more that it is time to take care of this generation.
Now is the time to put in place a universal income for young people.
There are so many who are in a precarious situation.
A society which does not take care of its youth, which does not invest in it, is a society which condemns its future.
EDITOR'S RATING: 4/5
"Les Cahiers d'Esther: Stories of my 15 years",
by Riad Sattouf.
Allary Éditions.
56 pages.
€ 16.90.
