By Alexandre Devecchio – Fayard Editions 02/2026.

More than an autobiography, this is a chronicle of a time so recent and yet already so distant. A time when the northern suburbs of Paris were a melting pot of assimilation. Alexandre Devecchio, son of an Italian-Portuguese immigrant couple, is undeniably qualified to speak about integration and assimilation. In the course of his journey, which led him to become the brilliant editor-in-chief of the opinion pages of Le Figaro and Le Figaro Magazine, as well as the host of the program "Controverse" on LCP, the author paints a picture of Seine-Saint-Denis, whose rapid decline he has witnessed firsthand. An observation we corroborate, having also grown up in Seine-Saint-Denis. Endemic delinquency there has reached apocalyptic proportions with the proliferation of drug trafficking. Communalism and Islamism have taken root in this breeding ground of organized crime. The author describes this shift from "side by side" to "face to face" and offers an analysis of the causes while maintaining a small dose of optimism by considering "the outlines of a possible reconciliation".

Among the most original chapters in this book, we should note the one on "the forgotten victims of 2005." The author reminds us that while the deaths of young Zyed and Bouna, electrocuted in an EDF transformer where they had locked themselves in, triggered the suburban riots, the embers of which were largely fanned by the "progressive" press and the left, the murder of police officer Jean-Claude Irvoas, beaten to death in front of his family, and the death of Alain Lambert, the caretaker of the Trappes high school, asphyxiated while trying to stop the building fire, did not receive the same "media attention." Yet they were courageously trying to do their duty. But perhaps a little too white?

Alexandre Devecchio also recounts his experiences, surprises, and questions at journalism school. He has particular questions about the Islamo-leftist turn taken by two of his colleagues of North African origin, Nassira and Louisa, young women who were once emancipated but have now embraced radical indigenous ideology. And anyone familiar with the Alloncle report on public broadcasting won't be truly surprised by the results of the "vote-game" organized at the CFJ (Center for Journalism Training) for the 2012 presidential election! It's worth remembering that in this internal pre-vote, Hollande obtained 53% of the votes and Mélenchon 47% in the second round, while Sarkozy and Le Pen received no votes in the first round…

We'll let you discover the entirety of this captivating and enlightening memoir. As for the evolution of this "lost territory of the Republic," we can sum it up with a little song reminiscent of Aznavour:

The Lament of the Nine-Three

I'm talking about a time
Those under forty
They cannot know.
Vain memories, perhaps.
At that time in nine-three
Assimilation was a given.
Side by side, step by step
Kabyles or Catholics were at the bar mitzvah.
We spoke French, sometimes rather badly.
What if Saint-Denis still honored its kings?
Stalin's friends were in charge there, indeed.
In La Courneuve, it was the Fête de l'Humanité (Humanity Festival).
In Villetaneuse, it was the Malma
Where Caesar took his first steps.
The veil, his Venus did not wear one,
It wasn't the casbah yet.
At Vogue, Dutronc sang "And me, and me"
A prelude to the era of every man for himself.
In this suburb, there are only a few cinemas.
We projected life beyond.
No swarms of students shouting "Long live Gaza"
They locate it on a map on the Ghanaian side,
Frustrated, graduates in Whatever,
Fleeing reality, work, and the law.
There were, of course, criminals,
But above all, workers, shopkeepers, a home
Poor but honorable and without welfare
Back then, that's what the 93 was like.

    Lucien Vollesan, nouvelliste.