The second volume in Simone de Beauvoir's autobiography. In it she continues the story of her life from the age of 21, through the uneasy rebelliou...
read full description
reviews
Jan 31, 2012
Manny
rated it: 
In the second volume of her memoirs, Simone de Beauvoir tells you what it was like to be a young woman living with Sartre. There were many interesting surprises. I hadn't realized what a natural gift for languages he had - there was an incident when someone thought he might be a spy, because his German accent was just too damn good. I hadn't realized either what a lot of fun he was (really! I'm not being ironic!), or that he was so mentally unstable. He had some rather startling delusions about,
More...
3 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Apr 26, 2011
After being blown away by the first volume of Simone de Beauvoir's memoirs last September, I knew I had to get to the second installment as soon as possible. Let me just say, it did not disappoint. Covering the years from 1929, when Beauvoir graduated from college and first lived on her own as an adult, through the development of her ideas and interpersonal relationships of the 1930s and into the war years to the liberation of Paris in 1944, La force de l'âge (translated into English as The Pr
More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Oct 23, 2011
Kristen
rated it:
If volume one of her memoirs made me fall completely in love with Simone de Beauvoir, then volume two is what always comes afterward, where those endearing quirks are seen for the faults they are, which doesn't make one love her any less, perhaps more even.
If you're looking for the dirt, this autobiography is hardly forthcoming, but she does offer some explanation of her emotions and motives, if you read between the lines, though she never mentions any juicy personal details, which More...
If you're looking for the dirt, this autobiography is hardly forthcoming, but she does offer some explanation of her emotions and motives, if you read between the lines, though she never mentions any juicy personal details, which More...
20 comments
like
(8 people liked it)
Sep 24, 2011
Samantha
rated it: 
Have you ever read a book and the first sentence you read you can't stop because it has struck forcefully at how you define yourself? This is that book for me. De Beauvoir wrote her autobiography in four parts, indulgent? Not particularly. Although De Beauvoir obviously writes from her perspective, she's often focusing on the world around her, her developments as a writer in a community of writers and how the war that surrounds her impacts her philosophy. This book focuses on De Beauvoir's life
More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Aug 21, 2011
Angela
rated it: 
I read this book when I was young. I think I would have enjoyed it more as a mature person.
Jan 05, 2010
I'm simultaneously reading Artie Lange's autobiography. Quite the compare and contrast.
Dec 16, 2010
Aubrey
rated it:
Simone De Beauvoir is an interesting character, and autobiographies intrigue me because I usually end up liking the author LESS after reading their own portrayal of themselves. Not in this case though. The time she covers in this book goes from her early twenties to her mid thirties, and I felt I was able to identify with her in a lot of her concerns. Her accounts of famous artists in her circle of friends was fascinating, and of course, the backdrop of Paris during World War Two lent a very
More...
Jul 03, 2010
Cherie
rated it:
The second in Beauvoir’s autobiography series; this has been said to be her best, and I can see why. Beauvoir comes into adulthood, works on clarifying her relationship with Sartre (how fascinating I find their relationship – it seems so impossible but they still manage to make it a success), her writing grows, her teaching career blossoms (and stops), and WWII is a dominating frightful factor. Highly engaging.
Apr 18, 2008
Daniel
rated it:
This was a bit sad to read, especially after having read her other autobiographical accounts of her younger years, since in this book she seemed to be preparing herself mentally for leaving this world, and many people around her were already dying. But her wisdom-filled reflections and comments in this book are very interesting.
Dec 16, 2009
Koo
rated it:
I read this book when I was in my early twenties. It is wonderful and amazing. Simone de Beauvoir's genius fell under the shadow of Jean Paul Sartre's. She should have been as or more famous as he was. She was brilliant.
Jun 03, 2007
Jesse
rated it:
it's too long. full of WWII era slacker-anarchist-intellectual philosophy that's still fresh and provocative sixty years later. also we see the intellectual development of beauvoir and sartre.
Jan 29, 2011
Ginger
rated it:
So. I've been reading this for over a year now. An awful lot heavier going than the first volume of autobiography. And also - that Satre! (shakes head).
Jan 29, 2012
dete
rated it:
it's worthed beacuse of the direct point of vue by a future philosopher for the events from the 1920's and her friendship with Jean-Paul Sartre
Jan 29, 2012
Svenja
rated it:
Part of Beauvoirs autobiography. Astonishingly detailed, it's as if you were there.
Feb 01, 2012
Jan 26, 2012
Jan 25, 2012
Jan 23, 2012
Jan 29, 2012
Jan 19, 2012
Jan 19, 2012
Jan 19, 2012
Jan 17, 2012
Jan 16, 2012
