Flaws
La fêlure
A Literary Journey
This deeply personal and philosophical work draws inspiration from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story The Crack-Up and expands into a rich tapestry of literary, poetic, and existential reflections. Casiraghi explores the idea of “brokenness” not as a flaw to be hidden, but as a fundamental part of being alive—something that opens us to beauty, vulnerability, and understanding.
Through references to a wide range of figures—from Ingeborg Bachmann, Colette, Marguerite Duras, and Anna Akhmatova, to Bernard Moitessier (the solitary sailor) and J.J. Cale (the singer-songwriter)—Casiraghi weaves a meditative journey that is neither memoir nor academic essay. Instead, it’s a series of lyrical and introspective variations on the theme of fragility, inner cracks, and the transformative power they hold.
She writes: “Something in us is broken; so much the better.”
This sentiment encapsulates the book’s core: embracing imperfection and fracture as the very site of life’s most meaningful experiences.
Flaws is not just a literary essay—it’s a sensitive exploration of how we endure, transform, and sometimes even flourish through what wounds us.
Reviews
“A haunting, personal, and sensitively intelligent tribute to those in search of meaning in an imperfect life … Charlotte Casiraghi’s beautiful text reveals a mind in motion, constantly on the edge, seeking against the flow of conventionality.”
– Les Inrocks
“An escape from appearances and an invitation to listen to what usually remains unspoken.”
– Vanity Fair
“This magnificent text by Charlotte Casiraghi constantly oscillates – it regenerates, digs further and deeper, on a journey that is both melancholic and luminous…”
– Livres Hebdo
« Charlotte Casiraghi’s first book is not only a beautiful literary essay, but also the birth certificate of a writer.”
– Le Figaro Magazine
“Charlotte Casiraghi has penned an elegant essay.”
– Lire