An Attempt at Exhausting a Place in Paris

An Attempt at Exhausting a Place in Paris, (French: Tentative d'épuisement d'un lieu parisien) is a short (roughly 60 pages) book by Georges Perec written in October 1974 and published in 1975. It is a collection of observations which Perec wrote as he sat in Saint-Sulpice Square in Paris. Rather than describing impressive or notable things such as the architecture, Perec aims to describe all the things that usually pass unnoticed. He charts brief details of buses and people who pass, not worrying about repetition.

The Tentative was first published in a journal, then in the 10/18 series and finally reedited by Christian Bourgois.

Reception

HTMLGIANT's Lily Hoang reviewed it favorably stating "Georges Perec is charming, the most charming man I will never meet, and An Attempt is yet another charming example of his charm."

External links

• Bibliography of secondary writings on Tentative