Long live dubious heroes! – Le Point 

An autopsy of trouble. – Le Soir 

A funny sort of book? Maybe, but not just. Dark, more like. – Plugged

A rhythmic and funny debut novel written with the banter of bistrot regulars. One day, Florent Oiseau will no longer need a series of casual jobs to live from his writing – L’Obs

A radical change in tone with Showing Up by Florent Oiseau, without a doubt the most nonchalant novel of the rentrée and certainly one of the funniest. We follow the calamitous story of Fred, jobseeker facing the end of his benefits and a champion of procrastination. The novel is reminiscent of Since the Layoffs by Scottish author Iain Levison. – Libération 

In this biting tragicomedy, Florent Oiseau paints an unembellished picture of an absurdly competitive society – Livres Hebdo  

Such style, such humor! Ages since I laughed so much – Libraire Périgourdin (Babelio)

Thanks for the great laughs! – Christelle, Librairie Rue De Verneuil (Annecy)

A debut novel not to be missed – Antoine, Librairie Michel (Fontainebleau)

Behind the zaniness, a bold debut novel that is incredibly mastered – Magazine Néon

The most casual novel of the rentrée littéraire and certainly one of the funniest. –AFP

Showing Up is a real gem. What stays enjoyable is the ease with which Florent Oiseau glides between registers of formal language and slang. At certain points, I felt like I was reading slices from scripts by Michel Audiard or rediscovering the embellished prose of Alphonse Boudard – La Vi(ll)e en Rose

A dryly funny debut novel, very much in the spirit of the times, so not always rosy. – Ouest France

With his first novel Showing Up, Florent Oiseau throws us into the unremarkable life of an antihero, normal and all too familiar, whose unparalleled laziness, far from inspiring us, give us a smile. – Metro

A debut novel that takes a humorous look at the precarious generation, drifting between unemployment and casual work. 

Fred, in his early forties, floats along from day to day. After years of doing jobs that put something on the table and periods of unemployment, he gave up on having a career. His days are now spent sleeping, eating sausages in front of daytime television and drinking halves in the local bistro, waiting for love. 

Until he finds out that his entitlement to benefits is coming to an end and the little money he gets will soon be stopped. There is nothing for it: he has to get down to work. He won’t find a paid job, but he will find problems. Because Fred, out of laziness or naivety, has a nasty habit of landing himself in trouble…

From Paris to Malaga, Showing Up takes us on a comic series of adventures with a character that is as likeable as he is disillusioned. A modern-day comedy in which the precarious generation appears behind the laughter.