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Три Дюма
Андре Моруа, классик французской литературы XX века, автор знаменитых романизированных биографий Жорж Санд, Бальзака, Виктора Гюго, Шелли и Байрона, считается подлинным мастером психологической прозы. Он создал целый литературный пантеон. И особое место в нем занимает тройной портрет: генерала Дюма Дави де ля Пайетри и двух знаменитых Александров – Дюма-отца и Дюма-сына. Это также портрет девятнадцатого века, ибо, по словам Моруа, "на фоне целого столетия семейство Дюма разыгрывало на сцене Франции прекраснейшую из драм – свою жизнь".
546 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1957
6 people are currently reading
95 people want to read
About the author
André Maurois
1,088 books254 followersAndré 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.
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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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 24, 2025
I've chosen this book for two reasons; first of all, I love Maurois's writing and this is not the first biography by him I've read. The second reason was, of course, Alexandre Dumas père and all those long happy hours I spent with his books in childhood.
Three generations of the Dumas family, the three Dumas - all of them so different but each of them is a Titan, as Maurois calls them, for a reason.
The incredible story of General Dumas’ dramatic rise from slavery to become a celebrated Napoleonic hero.
Alexandre Dumas père, the author of the timeless works, the great Entertainer -a fountain of joy, kindness and generosity - brilliant, exuberant figure whose life was as colorful as his novels.
Dumas fils, a always unsatisfied, arrogant and moralizing figure, nevertheless inherited some of his father's talent.
This gracefully written biography of the famous dynasty excels in balancing rich historical context with intimate portraiture. (Numerous extracts from letters and diaries demonstrate the enormous amount of work the author put in and make the narration more authentic).
This isn't a fairy tale or one of Alexandre Dumas père's historical novels - Maurois doesn’t shy away from the complexities of his subjects - their flaws and contradictions but does his best to remain objective.
Elegant and engaging, Titans is a masterclass in biographical storytelling.
Three generations of the Dumas family, the three Dumas - all of them so different but each of them is a Titan, as Maurois calls them, for a reason.
The incredible story of General Dumas’ dramatic rise from slavery to become a celebrated Napoleonic hero.
Alexandre Dumas père, the author of the timeless works, the great Entertainer -a fountain of joy, kindness and generosity - brilliant, exuberant figure whose life was as colorful as his novels.
Dumas fils, a always unsatisfied, arrogant and moralizing figure, nevertheless inherited some of his father's talent.
This gracefully written biography of the famous dynasty excels in balancing rich historical context with intimate portraiture. (Numerous extracts from letters and diaries demonstrate the enormous amount of work the author put in and make the narration more authentic).
This isn't a fairy tale or one of Alexandre Dumas père's historical novels - Maurois doesn’t shy away from the complexities of his subjects - their flaws and contradictions but does his best to remain objective.
Elegant and engaging, Titans is a masterclass in biographical storytelling.
November 15, 2023
Cred că André Maurois este unul dintre cei mai buni autori de biografii pe care i-am citit. Felul în care folosește elementele romanești fără a se abate vreun pic de la adevărul documentat pînă în cele mai mici detalii este de-a dreptul uluitor, estompînd pînă la anihilare uneori granița dintre lumea reală și cea fictivă, lăsînd procedeeele literare și științifice să circule liber de la un tărîm la altul, ceea ce te face să-i citești biografia, după cum bine au remarcat criticii, cu sufletul la gură, ca pe un roman.
Maurois îi imortalizează pe autori cu aceeași forță cu care cei doi Dumas și-au imortalizat eroii și dacă cititorul a fost vrăjit de muschetari în copilărie sau poate chiar la maturitate îi va regăsi cu înduioșare între aceste pagini, la fel de vii, de cutezători, de lăudăroși și de risipitori. Viața și moartea lui Dumas par modelate după cele ale lui Porthos, Dumas-fiul este un amestec de Athos și Aramis, iar bunicul Dumas, cu vitejia lui legendară și cu calitățile sale fizice impresionante, pare un d'Artagnan cu forța lui Porthos.
În plus, dacă prezentarea celor trei Dumas scoate în evidență talentul de portretist al autorului, evocarea epocilor în care au trăit pune în valoare talentul său în recrearea unei atmosfere. Epoca lui Napoleon (cu meschinătatea împăratului despre care vorbea în memoriile ei și Mme de Staël), Restaurația și cel de-al doilea imperiu cu inevitabilele intrigi de Curte, efervescența celei de-a treia Republici ne sînt prezentate dintr-o perspectivă culturală, care doar pare mai îngustă decît cea politică și/sau socială. Totul construit cu virtuozitatea unui scriitor realist genial, încît trebuie să-ți amintești nu o dată, cum spuneam la început, că citești o biografie și nu un roman.
Maurois îi imortalizează pe autori cu aceeași forță cu care cei doi Dumas și-au imortalizat eroii și dacă cititorul a fost vrăjit de muschetari în copilărie sau poate chiar la maturitate îi va regăsi cu înduioșare între aceste pagini, la fel de vii, de cutezători, de lăudăroși și de risipitori. Viața și moartea lui Dumas par modelate după cele ale lui Porthos, Dumas-fiul este un amestec de Athos și Aramis, iar bunicul Dumas, cu vitejia lui legendară și cu calitățile sale fizice impresionante, pare un d'Artagnan cu forța lui Porthos.
În plus, dacă prezentarea celor trei Dumas scoate în evidență talentul de portretist al autorului, evocarea epocilor în care au trăit pune în valoare talentul său în recrearea unei atmosfere. Epoca lui Napoleon (cu meschinătatea împăratului despre care vorbea în memoriile ei și Mme de Staël), Restaurația și cel de-al doilea imperiu cu inevitabilele intrigi de Curte, efervescența celei de-a treia Republici ne sînt prezentate dintr-o perspectivă culturală, care doar pare mai îngustă decît cea politică și/sau socială. Totul construit cu virtuozitatea unui scriitor realist genial, încît trebuie să-ți amintești nu o dată, cum spuneam la început, că citești o biografie și nu un roman.
May 2, 2018
So, pretty much exactly what the title says. It's a rundown of the family starting with General Dumas (the grandpa), running through Alexandre pere (the one you know), and ending with Alexandre fils ( the playwright).
Admittedly, given that all three of these guys are named Alexandre Dumas, it's a little slippery at first, but the author does a great job of differentiating, especially between the younger two. He gets a little wacky with this (referring to the father as Porthos) at times (cute, right?).
The extremely brief section about Grandpa Dumas was very interesting from a historical perspective, and really laid the groundwork for the writing style of his son. The bulk of the book covers the Musketeers author and his son, and, in a less striking way, gives you a picture of how their lives influenced both their own work and that of one another.
By the end, you get a little tired of reading ever-longer letters from one person to another, and I'll be the first to tell you I'm no French History expert, so some of the names were lost on me. I think the most intriguing part of the whole book was the way Dumas pere is given somewhat of a carte blanche on his various love affairs, which, ironically, is the same attitude you have to take when reading his stories. With that foundation, it does allow you to investigate Dumas fils in a different way. I have only read his one novel, so I can't tell you a lot about his writing overall, but, having read this, I do feel like I understand where he was coming from, and why he wrote to the themes he did.
If you're a Dumas fan, you could do worse. (Though to be fair, this is the first bio of any of them I have read [to be more fair, the first I have seen]) By the end I was ready to be done, but that doesn't mean it wasn't worth the time.
Spoiler though: they all die at the end. Every. Single. One.
Admittedly, given that all three of these guys are named Alexandre Dumas, it's a little slippery at first, but the author does a great job of differentiating, especially between the younger two. He gets a little wacky with this (referring to the father as Porthos) at times (cute, right?).
The extremely brief section about Grandpa Dumas was very interesting from a historical perspective, and really laid the groundwork for the writing style of his son. The bulk of the book covers the Musketeers author and his son, and, in a less striking way, gives you a picture of how their lives influenced both their own work and that of one another.
By the end, you get a little tired of reading ever-longer letters from one person to another, and I'll be the first to tell you I'm no French History expert, so some of the names were lost on me. I think the most intriguing part of the whole book was the way Dumas pere is given somewhat of a carte blanche on his various love affairs, which, ironically, is the same attitude you have to take when reading his stories. With that foundation, it does allow you to investigate Dumas fils in a different way. I have only read his one novel, so I can't tell you a lot about his writing overall, but, having read this, I do feel like I understand where he was coming from, and why he wrote to the themes he did.
If you're a Dumas fan, you could do worse. (Though to be fair, this is the first bio of any of them I have read [to be more fair, the first I have seen]) By the end I was ready to be done, but that doesn't mean it wasn't worth the time.
Spoiler though: they all die at the end. Every. Single. One.
February 11, 2017
Raasugi elulugude inimene olemata - SEE mulle meeldis. Kaks vanemat Dumas'd tundusid mõnusad mehed, noorim ... nojah.
Ja see, kuidas keskmine Dumas luges vanas eas "Kolme musketäri", saamaks teada, on see ka midagi väärt, on kuld.
Ja see, kuidas keskmine Dumas luges vanas eas "Kolme musketäri", saamaks teada, on see ka midagi väärt, on kuld.
May 25, 2018
4 stars for the first half and 3 stars for the second half, 3.5 for the whole book.
November 22, 2022
J'ai pas mis 2 étoiles par ce que c'est un mauvais livre, mais ce n'est juste pas le genre de livre que j'aime. Il y a dans ce livre un passage que j'ai apprécié et qui peut (peut être) décrire une des raisons pour lesquelles je ne l'ai pas apprécié plus que ça:
"C'est parfois une force qu'une éducation négligée ; quand on lit trop tôt les maîtres on ne les comprend pas et l'on s'en dégoute ; quand on vient à eux à 20 ans, au moment où déjà l'on commence à éprouver les sentiments qu'ils ont décrit, on s'y attache"
Les trois Dumas, page 53
"C'est parfois une force qu'une éducation négligée ; quand on lit trop tôt les maîtres on ne les comprend pas et l'on s'en dégoute ; quand on vient à eux à 20 ans, au moment où déjà l'on commence à éprouver les sentiments qu'ils ont décrit, on s'y attache"
Les trois Dumas, page 53
April 28, 2024
Nevím, proč na Goodreads není česká edice této knihy, když mám fyzickou podobu přímo před sebou😂.
Byla to zajímavá kniha, díky které jsem se dozvěděla spoustu zajímavých věcí. Byla dobře napsaná.
Čteno na VŠ
Byla to zajímavá kniha, díky které jsem se dozvěděla spoustu zajímavých věcí. Byla dobře napsaná.
Čteno na VŠ
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews