Légendes rustiques

by George Sand

Rustic Legends

50 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1858

About the author

Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil, best known by her pen name George Sand, was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. One of the most popular writers in Europe in her lifetime, being more renowned than either Victor Hugo or Honoré de Balzac in England in the 1830s and 1840s, Sand is recognised as one of the most notable writers of the European Romantic era. She wrote more than 50 volumes of various works to her credit, including tales, plays and political texts, alongside her 70 novels.
Like her great-grandmother, Louise Dupin, whom she admired, George Sand advocated for women's rights and passion, criticized the institution of marriage, and fought against the prejudices of a conservative society. She was considered scandalous because of her turbulent love life, her adoption of masculine clothing, and her masculine pseudonym.

Reviews

[vladigathe · Rating 5 out of 5]

énorme banger merci george pour les travaux 🫡

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strange and bizarre rural tales by George Sand. It's a quick read, so is easy to finish, and as strange as the tales are, it's not tedious to read. It's actially an interesting look into what people thought as frightening back then. George's description of pastoral terrors may not scare most people in the 21st century, after what horrors and films have done to us, but I'm sure it was chilling to the 19th century mind...

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

George Sand's original work is wonderful. This translation is awful. I purchased this on Amazon, excited to read the Rustic Legends but I was extremely disappointed in the quality. I believe the translator is not a professional, or even fluent in French, and used a machine translation without any editing whatsoever. The original French is archaic and complex - it is absolutely the kind of text that needs a skilled translator to make sense of it.

I later found the twelve stories are available in English online. They are free to read and the translation is better quality.

[Matt Presnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

George Sand recounts various local peasant tales of the supernatural from the era leading up to the mid-1800’s.

This is a short read, but I really enjoyed it. A few of the tales are a little unsettling to imagine even, though I don’t think that’s truly the intent. It comes across as a neutral retelling in a somewhat documentarian way.

Even so, I found enjoyment in being able to see inside the minds of humans in a pre-technological era and their views on what goes bump in the night.

[Siobhan Hawthorne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Je remercie les éditions Walrus de m’avoir donné accès à leurs fabuleuses publications afin de pouvoir les chroniquer !

À ma grande honte, je n’avais jusque là jamais rien lu de George Sand, alias Amantine Aurore Lucile Dupin. Et pourtant, elle a tout pour plaire : elle prend la défense des femmes, porte une tenue vestimentaire masculine et lance cette mode (un gros scandale pour l’époque bien sûr) et se dresse contre les préjugés de la société conservatrice dans laquelle elle vit. Intellectuelle, romancière, auteure de son autobiographie, critique, elle a plusieurs chapeaux tous plus intéressants que les autres. Une personne des plus fascinantes donc, que je regrette de découvrir seulement maintenant mais ne doutez pas, je compte bien continuer mon exploration !

Légendes rustiques est un recueil de mythes et récits oraux de la région du Berry recueillis par le fils de George Sand, Maurice. Ce dernier illustre d’ailleurs certaines légendes écrites par sa mère, avec de magnifique lithographies.

Si vous appréciez les légendes, fables et autres contes, vous retrouverez ici des éléments déjà bien connus, écrits avec un regard parfois assez particuliers et nouveaux (par rapport à mes lectures personnelles j’entends), notamment sur les loups garous, sorcières et autres créatures folkloriques. Comment George Sand le dit elle-même dans la préface, si ces récits ont été recueillis dans une région particulière, il ne fait nul doute que d’autres versions existent mais c’est cette diversité qui est fascinante justement.

La plupart des histoires sont assez courtes, il serait donc peu intéressant d’en parler puisque ce serait de la paraphrase beaucoup moins belle que la plume de George Sand, donc je peux seulement vous conseiller d’aller voir ça de plus près ! Certaines histoires donnent des frissons dans le dos avec leurs monstres et créatures malfaisantes et on n’a nul doute à imaginer la terreur des habitants de l’époque.

[Larissa Mourullo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nos são apresentadas diversas lendas, em grande parte da região de Berry na França. Gostei bastante da leitura e da escrita da autora, mas tive um pouco de problema por não conhecer muito sobre os locais e regiões mencionados no livro, de resto é uma leitura rápida e bastante interessante.

[Marta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confuso mas interessante vale uma reeleitura para aprofundar e pesquisar. Mas não é uma narrativa linear nem dentro dos próprios contos.