Le Pain Maudit

On 15 August 1951, in the French town of Pont-Sant-Esprit, a mass poisoning event occurred impacting 250 people and causing 50 to be placed in asylums, while seven people died. Villagers reported symptoms of nausea, cold chills, vomiting, hallucinations and convulsions. Originally believed to be a food borne illness caused by 'cursed bread' or le pain maudit, in the lead up to this event there were other towns affected with similar outbreaks, all linked to bakeries that made their bread with flour from one supplier. 

This true story underpins Sophie Machintosh's novel Cursed Bread (2023), longlisted for this year's Women's Prize. Set in a post-war French town, Eloudie is the wife of a baker, who longs for a life of more passion and intimacy. The couple have drunken, unsatisfying sex a few times a year; her frustration and desire is evident. She admires the way he carefully kneads the dough, and wishes he touched her with such affection. Working in the bakery, she lives vicariously through her customers who give her tidbits of gossip when they come to buy their bread. Likewise, at the lavoir, the town's women gather to do laundry and share intrigues.

Into this humdrum domestic life come 'the Ambassador' and his glamorous wife Violet. Her fine undergarments are the subject of much speculation at the lavoir, by the women both jealous of and attracted to this stranger. Becoming friends, Eloudie and Violet immerse themselves in each other's lives, while the ambassador flirts with Eloudie, and the baker continues his quest for the perfect loaf. 

Eloudie narrates the novel largely in the form of letters written to Violet after the shocking events of the poisoning. In this correspondence, she reveals her desire for Violet, and in parts her letters are delectably erotic. Telling the tale in retrospect, Eloudie comes across as bitter and vague, and her memory of events may not be trustworthy. At times, Eloudie is an interesting character, and through her eyes we see all others, which may account for the vivid portrayal of Violet and the unsatisfying outline of the baker.

I really wanted to enjoy this novel, and had high hopes given Mackintosh's reputation as an author (longlisted for the Booker in 2018 for The Water Cure) and the intriguing subject matter. While Mackintosh's prose is wonderful, the storytelling was not, and I was really disappointed. I wanted more of the cursed bread, which really only happens in the last few pages when the villagers are hallucinating and ill in response to the poisoning. Indeed the impetus for the story could have been anything else, as it is essentially about a dissatisfied woman continually searching for the life she thinks she wants.