A classic plot a priori on the quest for origins stemming from the discovery of a family secret. With more than the narrator rubs by history, that of war, concentration camps. In his research he will brew remugles this time he brings violence on his own. It is in the analysis of this relationship, the narrator - author - is lost somewhat not always interesting speculation, especially in the first part of the novel. Relevant digressions - including over evil - are a bit embedded in these lengths but they allow to glimpse the talent of Fabrice Humbert. The Origin of violence would benefit from a more dense novelistic dimension while the second part becomes more thrilling.