''The Book of Proper Names'' (french: Robert des noms propres) is a Belgian novel by

Amélie Nothomb Baroness Fabienne Claire Nothomb (), better known by her pen name Amélie Nothomb (; born 13 August 1967),''État présent de la noblesse belge'', éditions of 1979, 1995 and 2010. Her birth is announced in n° 87, aout 1967, p. 340 of the ''Bull ...

. It was first published in 2002. It is a romanticized account of the life of the singer

RoBERT The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, whom Nothomb became acquainted with as an avid admirer of her songs.

Plot

In a vaguely surreal story, an extraordinary little girl is born from strange circumstances - her mother murdered her father, gave birth in prison, and then hanged herself. Plectrude, as the girl is unfortunately named by her mother, is adopted by her aunt and lives a fairy-like existence until she enrolls into the Paris Opera Ballet School, a rigorous institution portrayed as a "scalpel to slice away the last flesh of childhood."The Scotsman, "A twisted ballerina's dance macabre" 09, May 2004
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References

External links

Oxford Index - Anna Kemp, French Studies, "The Child as Artist in Amélie Nothomb's "Robert des noms propres"
2002 Belgian novels French-language novels Novels by Amélie Nothomb Éditions Albin Michel books {{Belgium-stub