The Moulins is a name. A place. People.
A city on the outskirts of Nice. A neighborhood that seems to have been there forever, but is only forty years old. The children are proud of it: it’s their home, their city under the sun. To cross its boundaries, one must either wish it or live there.
In a beautiful script, abrupt yet extremely fresh, sensitive, poetic, and filled with tender humor, Sophie Braganti offers a series of stories that depict the daily life of Sylvie, Mohamed, Catherine, or Elisabeth—children living in these HLM (low-income housing) buildings where difficulties and the joy of life are closely intertwined.
Sophie Braganti loves her neighborhood and it is with both pen and heart that she invites others to discover it, this neighborhood that has its rules, habits, and hopes that build the identity of this precinct at the edge of the Plaine du Var.
I invite you to read Sophie Braganti to perceive your city of Nice from an aspect as unusual as it is pleasant, which might make you think that this time… It happened right near you.
The author
Sophie Braganti, a writer, poet, and art critic, lives and works in Nice. Published in poetry and art journals as well as by Éditions de l’Amourier, she has long written for the Dada magazine (Mango) and currently contributes to the 9 de cœur magazine (Le Seuil).
She leads writing workshops and is well-acquainted with the environment of children and teenagers, those from challenging neighborhoods, where youths mix, meet, and clash, in camaraderie or aggression.