Charming Young Man

September 4, 2023
In this inventive historical novel by Schrefer (The Darkness Outside Us), titular charmer Léon Delafosse, a financially downtrodden teen piano prodigy, attempts to navigate turn-of-the-century high-society Paris. To cover his conservatory expenses, Léon needs a society patron, but his socially awkward tendencies and his goal to “have the Léon part of himself disappear into the music” make fostering connections difficult. At almost 17, he’s running out of time to secure a patron, until he meets upper-middle-class Marcel Proust, whose job as a gossip columnist can provide Léon better access to members of high society. Léon fears that his attraction to men, which he can barely admit to himself, may be his downfall, but as he gets to know Marcel and his would-be patron Count Robert de Montesquiou, who are both open about their sexuality, this new world that Marcel introduces him to proves as attractive as it is tricky. Schrefer’s Léon Delafosse, who is based on the real French pianist of the same name, is not only likable, but sensitive and resilient, and his perseverance amid dramatic ups and downs on his path toward happiness is engaging. All characters are white. Ages 13–up.

September 1, 2023
A young pianist seeks to understand himself while trying to gain a foothold in high society. Seventeen-year-old L�on Delafosse is a piano prodigy, but he lacks the connections and know-how to find a patron and climb the social ladder in belle epoque Paris. Luckily--or, perhaps, unluckily--he meets the charismatic writer Marcel Proust, who introduces him to the fickle young Count Robert de Montesquiou. Robert could become his patron--and maybe more--if L�on plays his cards right, but Robert's patronage comes with more perils than L�on expected. As L�on attempts to learn the social games of the upper classes, he also struggles with his attraction to other boys and what that means for his life and career. As related in the author's note, the novel is based on the life of the real L�on Delafosse, a French pianist and composer who is largely unknown outside his wistful portrait by John Singer Sargent and his unfavorable fictionalized appearance in Proust's Remembrance of Things Past. With these details and Delafosse's and Proust's letters as research material, the author creates an intimate, sensitive, gay coming-of-age story. Each description paints a sensual image of L�on's world, from the rural idyll of his childhood home to his cramped Parisian apartment and Robert's sumptuous town house. Knowledge of the era is not necessary to enjoy L�on's story, but readers who do have that context will find even more to appreciate. Beautifully realized and a pleasure to read. (Historical fiction. 13-18)

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October 1, 2023
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* In this unique work, Schrefer transports his readers to the rarified world of classical music and high-society patronage of 1890s Paris. The novel follows an obscure historical figure, L�on Delafosse, from the French countryside to the Paris Conservatory. At 16, L�on loves playing the piano beyond anything else, even more than he loves his childhood friend and muse, F�lix. In order to survive, L�on must secure a wealthy benefactor, and while he has talent and beauty, he is impossibly naive about Paris society. At his first salon, he is rescued from uncomfortable small talk by none other than Marcel Proust. The two young men quickly feel a kinship, and Marcel sneaks L�on into a decadent party at the home of a young count, Robert de Montesquiou, the "Oscar Wilde of France." Robert is hardly a conventional patron, but L�on believes that Robert will accept him for who he is, and in particular his "unnatural" attraction to men. Unfortunately, plans to secure a critical recital performance lead to betrayal and scandal. Larger-than-life secondary characters play pivotal roles--John Singer Sargent for one. Above all, Schrefer masterfully portrays L�on's inner world, full of self-doubt and desperation (alongside dreamy moments at the piano), within a suspenseful story of high personal stakes. Can L�on have both musical success and a genuine life?

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Starred review from November 1, 2023

Gr 9 Up-Paris, the 1890s. Seventeen-year-old Leon Delafosse is stumbling his way through high society. An extremely gifted pianist with the looks of an angel, he is in desperate need of a patron so he can support his family and pay for his tuition at the Paris Conservatory. Initially assisting Leon is young gossip columnist Marcel Proust, but when the larger-than-life Count Robert de Monstesquiou-Fezensac offers his patronage, Leon becomes deeply devoted to him, not just as a patron, but as someone he could love. Based on the real-life story of French pianist Leon Delafosse, Charming Young Man is a captivating and digestible coming-of-age story. Schrefer immerses readers in the beautiful worlds of Belle Epoque Paris and rural France with detail that enhances the narrative. Teens will be seduced and captivated by the depictions of Paris high society, while also connecting with the heart of the plot: Leon finding his place in the world where he feels like an outsider. Fans of Schrefer's previous work The Darkness Outside Us will enjoy his new novel. Fans of historical YA fiction will be delighted with this sweet bildungsroman. VERDICT An enjoyable and easy-to-read coming-of-age story set in the past but relevant to the present.-Kaetlyn Phillips

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