Publishers Weekly
★ 02/15/2021
This revelatory collection by Proust (1877–1922), written almost two decades before he began to publish In Search of Lost Time, offers a lush and emotionally raw view into his evolution as a writer. The nine entries, annotated by footnotes, address topics such as love and suffering, homosexuality, and, of course, time lost and regained. As Friasse observes in his fine introduction, “the very fact of homosexuality” was a taboo subject in late 19th-century France, and thus the stories “comprise, hiding in plain sight, the private diary the writer entrusted to no one” (all but one were left unpublished). “In the Underworld” experiments with the form of a philosophical play, as Samson and the Comte de Quélus discuss the homosexual themes of Sodom and Gomorrah, which Proust would develop further in book four of In Search of Lost Time. The stories have plenty of scholarly appeal, but they are elegant on their own. In “Pauline De S.,” one of several meditations on death, Proust displays a piercing accuracy and poignancy in describing a visit to a dying friend. “A Captain’s Reminiscence,” the only story to have previously appeared, features an older man’s recollections of a corporal he was attracted to in his youth. The best may be the title story, about a woman who fancies a soldier, which is enthralling in its sensorial detail. Each tale features exquisite moments with expert annotations from Friasse. This volume is a fantastic discovery. (Apr.)
Les Inrockuptibles Nelly Kaprièlian
‘The dramatic birth of a writer destined for greatness.’
New Yorker
‘Fascinating.’
Literary Review
‘Finely translated and startlingly audacious... Elements of [Proust’s] greatness are already in place: his ability to combine the qualities of the satirist and the moralist; his curiosity about the workings of the human heart. There is even the first glimpse of his lasting discovery – that art, thought and analysis can draw the thorn of suffering.’
Evening Standard - Ian Thomson
‘The stories are of considerable scholarly interest... at once revelatory and oddly familiar... intriguing.’
Le Point Michel Schneider
‘A hundred years after his Prix Goncourt, the author of In Search of Lost Time returns, stronger than ever!’
Le Figaro Littéraire Mohammed Aïssaoui
‘To think that this treasure might have remained hidden in the shadows of the archives...’
Le Figaro Littéraire Mohammed Aïssaoui
‘To think that this treasure might have remained hidden in the shadows of the archives…’
Les Inrockuptibles Nelly Kaprièlian
‘The dramatic birth of a writer destined for greatness.’
Le Figaro Littéraire Mohammed Aïssaoui
‘To think that this treasure might have remained hidden in the shadows of the archives…’
Les Inrockuptibles Nelly Kaprièlian
‘The dramatic birth of a writer destined for greatness.’
Les Inrockuptibles - Nelly Kaprièlian
'The dramatic birth of a writer destined for greatness'
Le Point - Michel Schneider
'A hundred years after his Prix Goncourt, the author of In Search of Lost Time returns, stronger than ever!'
Le Figaro Littéraire - Mohammed Aïssaoui
'To think that this treasure might have remained hidden in the shadows of the archives...'
Le Figaro Littéraire - Etienne de Montety
'An aspiring writer in search of perfection, already preoccupied by the idea of transforming life into literature.'
JULY 2021 - AudioFile
Narrator Simon Vance gives these never-before-published stories by Proust charm of their own with his amiable tone and gentle cadence. This short work includes contextual explanations of themes that are seen in later works, including IN SEARCH OF LOST TIME. In “The Awareness of Loving Her,” Vance captures the first-person narrator’s sense of loss and earnestness as he searches for solace. In “The Mysterious Correspondent,” Vance’s emotional restraint parallels the caution of Proust’s own prose in carefully unfolding the unnamed lover. This audiobook will be particularly interesting to those familiar with Proust’s work, as it offers a fascinating glimpse of Proust’s experimentation as a young writer. Vance proves to be a masterful narrator of these newly published works. D.M.W. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
