false 25932 40 "Balzac [was] the master unequalled in the art of painting humanity as it exists in modern society," wrote George Sand. "He searched and dared everything."<br><br>Written between 1837 and 1843, <b>Lost Illusions</b> reveals, perhaps better than any other of Balzac's ninety-two novels, the nature and scope of his genius. The story of Lucien Chardon, a young poet from Angoulême who tries desperately to make a name for himself in Paris, is a brilliantly realistic and boldly satirical portrait of provincial manners and aristocratic life. Handsome and ambitious but naïve, Lucien is patronized by the beau monde as represented by Madame de Bargeton and her cousin, the formidable Marquise d'Espard, only to be duped by them. Denied the social rank he thought would be his, Lucien discards his poetic aspirations and turns to hack journalism; his descent into Parisian low life ultimately leads to his own death.<br><br>"Balzac was both a greedy child and an indefatigable observer of a greedy age, at once a fantastic and a genius, yet possessing a simple core of common sense," noted V. S. Pritchett, one of his several biographers. Another, André Maurois, concluded: "Balzac was by turns a saint, a criminal, an honest judge, a corrupt judge, a minister, a fob, a harlot, a duchess, and always a genius." <br><br>This Modern Library edition presents the translation by Kathleen Raine. 2373321 book 1962 Lost Illusions total:374|5:169|4:127|3:58|2:18|1:2| 374 1565 805 46 576781 0140442510 9780140442519 20 6 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175956693m/576781.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/576781.Lost_Illusions 5 4 false Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2003 Mon Mar 26 19:08:05 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 14 07:41:28 -0700 2007 more...]]> 576781 0140442510 9780140442519 20 6 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175956693m/576781.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/576781.Lost_Illusions 0 0 false Sun Jun 21 18:14:29 -0700 2009 Sun Jun 21 18:22:45 -0700 2009 more...]]> 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 4 0 false Thu Jun 04 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 04 18:44:12 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 04 18:44:46 -0700 2009 more...]]> 576781 0140442510 9780140442519 20 6 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175956693m/576781.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/576781.Lost_Illusions 0 1 false Sat Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 1988 Tue Aug 14 07:10:25 -0700 2007 Tue Aug 14 07:11:32 -0700 2007 give amail adress ]]> 702445 0375757902 9780375757907 31 3 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177424275m/702445.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/702445.Lost_Illusions 4 0 false Wed Feb 25 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 02 06:07:11 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 02 06:10:30 -0800 2009 1 more...]]> 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 2 0 false Sat Sep 13 07:33:20 -0700 2008 Sat Sep 13 08:08:45 -0700 2008 Lost Illusions as a work in and of itself is a bit like critiquing a rock album based on a single track. After all, Rather than a novel, in many ways it makes more sense to regard this book as a single episode in Balzac's insanely ambitious life-long project, La Comedie Humaine....more...]]> 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 2 0 false Tue Mar 20 12:11:24 -0700 2007 Wed Apr 04 00:56:30 -0700 2007 more...]]> 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 0 0 false Thu Jul 09 16:47:19 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 09 16:50:44 -0700 2009 more...]]> 576781 0140442510 9780140442519 20 6 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175956693m/576781.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/576781.Lost_Illusions 4 0 false Wed Nov 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Thu May 03 11:26:55 -0700 2007 Thu May 03 11:31:40 -0700 2007 more...]]> 702445 0375757902 9780375757907 31 3 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177424275m/702445.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/702445.Lost_Illusions 0 0 false Mon Nov 16 10:06:00 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 10:23:02 -0800 2009 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 2 0 false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Mar 23 01:35:41 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 23 01:35:41 -0700 2009 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 5 0 false Wed Mar 19 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Feb 10 09:12:29 -0800 2008 Wed Mar 19 08:12:08 -0700 2008 more...]]> 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 5 0 false Sat Dec 12 22:10:39 -0800 2009 Sat Dec 12 22:12:40 -0800 2009 Particularly that likeness by Rodin, almost as breathtaking as your writing.
]]> 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 0 0 false Wed Sep 16 05:11:21 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 16 05:16:53 -0700 2009 Hosted by: Dan Edelstein, assistant professor of French
]]> 2164884 2081207230 9782081207233 2 2 4.18 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2164884.Illusions_perdues 3 0 false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Wed Sep 09 00:34:19 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 00:35:26 -0700 2009 2164884 2081207230 9782081207233 2 2 4.18 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2164884.Illusions_perdues 0 0 false Thu Sep 10 19:26:04 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 19:26:04 -0700 2009 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 0 0 false Tue Jun 30 07:31:21 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 30 07:31:42 -0700 2009 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 0 0 false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 18:45:44 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 19 18:46:03 -0800 2009 25932 1406506583 9781406506587 245 29 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167772184m/25932.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25932.Lost_Illusions 2 0 true Thu Jun 25 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 27 05:48:08 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 27 05:48:08 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1248705 2070360628 9782070360628 28 1 4.18 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182246819m/1248705.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1248705.Illusions_perdues 5 0 false Wed Aug 27 19:14:14 -0700 2008 Wed Aug 27 19:18:55 -0700 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=2424323