About the work
"Serotonin" (French: "Sérotonine") is a novel by Michel Houellebecq, published on 4 January 2019 by Flammarion in Paris; the German translation appeared the same year with DuMont. Several German-language theatres have since adapted the novel for the stage.
Plot
The novel is narrated by 46-year-old agricultural engineer Florent-Claude Labrousse, who flees his Parisian life and relationship and, aided by the fictional antidepressant Captorix, retraces his past. A central subplot follows his former fellow student Aymeric, who runs a dairy farm in Normandy struggling against the economic decline of French agriculture.
Cultural significance
The novel sparked debate in France about the decline of agriculture and the farmers' protests of the period. Shaun Whiteside's English translation was longlisted for the 2020 International Booker Prize. Sebastian Hartmann's stage adaptation at the Hans Otto Theater Potsdam was invited to the 2026 Berlin Theatertreffen.