Louis Caron
THE BONE SETTER

On November 12, 1955, a landslide carried away a section of the City of Nicolet, killing 3 people. The Bishop's residence, the Commercial Academy, several dwellings, as well as a park known as le petit bois, disappeared into the clay along the river bank. As a result, the magnificent cathedral had to be torn down, as it stood precariously near the site of the tragedy.

Louis Caron captured this event in his novel entitled Le bonhomme sept heures (The Bone Setter), published in 1978 by Robert Laffont (Paris) and Leméac (Montréal).

This novel portrays 10-year-old Jean-Lu, who is nicknamed the Lone Ranger, perched on a branch of one of the majestic pines in the park when catastrophe suddenly strikes. The tree is swept away and the child perishes in the landslide.

"On Saturday, November 12, 1955, at around a quarter to twelve, the sun held all of Nicolet in the palm of its hand. The Lone Ranger was napping in his pine tree, sitting on a fork of branches, his head leaning against the trunk and his feet propped up on yet another branch, in front of him. There was no wind, but with a slight pressure of his legs, Jean-Lu could make his perch sway softly. To add to his delight, the child could part the top branches, covered in fresh needles, for a commanding view of the little city below that seemed to purr like a cat in the sun.
A silent jolt shook the ground. It seemed to originate from the very depths of the Earth." - Excerpt from Le bonhomme sept heures (The Bone Setter).

Needless to say, we did not attempt to create a steel replica of a giant pine. The designer took the liberty of sitting the child at the foot of a young tree. The sculpture illustrates a scene in Louis Caron's novel, but it also represents the pure pleasure a child finds in nature.

This sculpture was created by Nicolet artist Sébastien Brassard, based on an idea by Pierre Chatillon. The final coat was applied by Trois-Rivières artist Pierre Landry.

It was donated to the Literary Park in 2000 by the Grey Nuns of Nicolet.

[ Back to the park ]