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Prometheus: The Life of Balzac

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life of Balzac

571 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1965

8 people are currently reading
192 people want to read

About the author

André Maurois

1,025 books252 followers
André Maurois, born Emile Salomon Wilhelm Herzog, was a French author. André Maurois was a pseudonym that became his legal name in 1947.

During World War I he joined the French army and served as an interpreter and later a liaison officer to the British army. His first novel, Les silences du colonel Bramble, was a witty but socially realistic account of that experience. It was an immediate success in France. It was translated and also became popular in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries as The Silence of Colonel Bramble. Many of his other works have also been translated into English (mainly by Hamish Miles (1894–1937)), as they often dealt with British people or topics, such as his biographies of Disraeli, Byron, and Shelley.

During 1938 Maurois was elected to the prestigious Académie française. Maurois was encouraged and assisted in seeking this post by Marshal Philippe Pétain, and he made a point of acknowleging with thanks his debt to Pétain in his 1941 autobiography, Call no man happy - though by the time of writing, their paths had sharply diverged, Pétain having become Head of State of the Nazi-collaborationist Vichy France.

During World War II he served in the French army and the Free French Forces.

He died during 1967 after a long career as an author of novels, biographies, histories, children's books and science fiction stories. He is buried in the Neuilly-sur-Seine community cemetery near Paris.

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5 stars
46 (42%)
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37 (33%)
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20 (18%)
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
Profile Image for Ulysse.
397 reviews213 followers
October 20, 2020
Another excellent biography of that debt-ridden, coffee-guzzling, gap-toothed, woman-worshiping, round-bellied, golden-eyed, encyclopedic, mystical-realistic, jovial, one-man novel-factory, otherwise known as Balzac.
Profile Image for Claude.
507 reviews6 followers
November 7, 2024
Excellente biographie. Je suis loin d'être une grande lectrice de Balzac, mais c'est bien écrit et très intéressant.
Profile Image for Jesse Hilson.
158 reviews24 followers
December 15, 2024
It was a little tiresome, frankly. Heavily focused on Balzac’s debts, his financial mismanagement. I came away from this book with a dislike for the subject and an impatience with the biographer. I didn’t learn as much as I would have liked about the writings of Balzac except that he turned out a ton of books in his short lifetime and was always trying to play beat the clock in a sense. More ink was spilled over his extravagant furniture bills and sums he owed to decorators. Sad that he was only allowed to marry his Ukrainian bride right before his death. The ending, with the death scenes, was the best part of the book, but I don’t know if it’s because it was skillfully and emotionally done or because it signaled the end of this laborious reading experience, and I could finally unclench. Anyway, will not be reading a biography by Andre Maurois anytime soon. Might read Balzac himself again though.
Profile Image for Alison.
527 reviews1 follower
April 20, 2014
Little fat man with no teeth and lots of debts! Cute cute cute! I did learn that there are lots of his books I didn't know existed - I don't think I've seen them at the library… He lived hard (wrote from 12pm -6am, went to bed at 6pm) died young (50). Very detailed story of his life. He loved women, some loved him. I do!
Profile Image for Helen.
125 reviews51 followers
July 5, 2016
I am very sad to part with this book - I have a feeling close to losing someone I knew...
Profile Image for محمد نجابتی.
Author 9 books137 followers
August 25, 2018
برای شناخت بالزاک کتاب بسیار خوبیه فقط با این پیش فرض نوشته شده که شما اغلب آثار مشهور بالزاک رو قبلاً خوندید.
1,255 reviews7 followers
January 13, 2022
Good, old-fashioned biography of the writer- with a guide to his works at the end.
Profile Image for Rosewater Emily.
280 reviews2 followers
May 21, 2021
В 2015 году (и то навскидку) брался за чтение, но создаётся впечатление, что либо не окончил (наличествуют такие моменты, возможно и целые главы, в книге Моруа, преодоление которых кажется делом необязательным, а поскольку пролистывать "скучные места" привычки не воспитал, приходится попросту откладывать книгу в сторону, отказываться от дальнейшего чтения - как было, например, с "Феноменологией духа" и "Пустыней" Леклезио; к последней, к слову, поныне и не возвращался) либо был в достаточной мере отвлечён моционом, совмещаемым с не самым респектабельным рационом.
Благо, что биография сохраняет известную ироничность в отношении действующего лица, не способствуя возникновению брезгливого чувства от того, что живой человек преподносится в виде чересчур проработанного литературного героя какой-нибудь посредственной серии, заклеймённой рыночными отношениями 'adult fiction' (для примера, доверяясь информированности Моруа, пусть это будет один из ранних романов "Прометея"), на чьём фоне блекнет как авторская эрудированность, так и его же сноровка в ответственном деле заимствования отдельных качеств, чёрточек, граней и (даже №1) целых систем из творчества предшественников, современников и (даже №2) тех, чьё прошлое не может найти точек соприкосновения с авторскими перспективами. Проще говоря, это просто хорошая биография, не смотря на всю "старомодность" и (даже №3) "вульгарность" привычки приводить цитаты из личной переписки, призванные драматизировать или просто придать эмоциональную окраску и без того "прочувствованному" тексту.
Главное же: вопрос, которым Андре Моруа завершает свой труд: "Но кто не хотел бы быть Бальзаком?" - помимо того, что лично рецензент предпочёл бы книгам, завершающимся утвердительной формой (и точкой), те, что сохраняют и используют своё право на "открытую концовку" (неаккуратный росчерк или хотя бы кляксу); к тому же, сам читатель, вне зависимости от интерпретации психологического портрета Бальзака, приобретает таким путём возможность (даже №4) сугубо рефлекторно дать ответ, каковой в данном случае оказался простым признанием того, что "я не хотел бы быть Бальзаком".
Последний момент, касающийся непосредственно русскоязычного издания 1986 года (Київ, Вища школа): давать вступлению к книге, названной "Прометей..", заглавие " Книга о титане" - немножечко дурновкусие, товарищ Наркирьер (земля Вам пухом, Фёдор Семёнович), панацеей против которого выступает, (даже №5) если и воображаемая читателем, а всё-таки ирония Андре Моруа.
Profile Image for Steve Gordon.
362 reviews13 followers
May 13, 2014
"A state of warfare with no holds barred had existed between Balzac and the critics since Illusions Perdues. 'They want to scalp me,' he said, 'and I want to drink out of their skulls.'" An extremely well written biography of the master. Fantastique!
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