Écumes #[nn]

Carole Maurel's cover for this 2017 Steinkis release sets a quietly haunting tone: a lone young woman in a pale blue dress stands at the bow of a small wooden boat, adrift on a sea whose waves dissolve into a surreal mosaic of scattered paper or tiles. The image balances dreamlike unease with a kind of tender stillness, perfectly suited to the intimate, literary spirit Ingrid Chabbert and Maurel bring to Écumes. At 17,00 EUR, it's a beautifully packaged work that announces its emotional ambitions right from the first glance.