Change

Born into a very poor family in rural northern France, Eddy Bellegueule knows he is different from those around him, and not only because he is gay. On Saturday evenings, Eddy and a friend go to the “big” supermarket and just wander around, thinking of how grand it would be to actually shop there. Ignorance, poverty, and small doses of violence are common in Eddy’s limited world, and he wants to change his life. Impressed by educated, wealthy, stylish men, he transforms himself—changes his name, straightens his teeth, and improves his hairline. But the changes go beyond the superficial; Eddy also adheres to a strict, rigorous course of philosophical and historical studies that eventually lands him a place at a prestigious university in Paris. With the necessary help of friends Elena, Didier, and Ludovic along the way, Eddy successfully transforms himself into Édouard Louis and becomes a published author, leaving behind his small village and its inhabitants.