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Cztery róże dla Lucienne
Kultowy zbiór opowiadań francuskiego mistrza czarnego humoru, którym podbił serca i umysły polskich czytelników. Znajdziemy tu królową, którą wszyscy chcieli ciupciać, ale nikt nie chciał poślubić. Phila, który jedną swoją odmrożoną nogą podzielił się z głodnymi kolegami, a drugą po kryjomu zjadł sam. Znajdziemy też Jezusa, który stąpając po falach, pośliznął się na skórce od banana. Oto bohaterowie fascynujących opowiastek pełnych makabry i absurdalnego humoru. W latach 1995-98 siedem wydań!
135 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1967
7 people are currently reading
489 people want to read
About the author
Roland Topor
150 books236 followersA French illustrator, painter, writer and filmmaker, known for the surreal nature of his work. He was of Polish Jewish origin and spent the early years of his life in Savoy where his family hid him from the Nazi peril.
Roland Topor wrote the novel The Tenant (Le Locataire chimérique, 1964), which was adapted to film by Roman Polanski in 1976. The Tenant is the story of a Parisian of Polish descent, who develops an obsession regarding what has happened to his apartment's previous tenant. It is a chilling exploration of alienation and identity, asking disturbing questions about how we define ourselves. The later novel Joko's Anniversary (1969), another fable about loss of identity, is a vicious satire on social conformity. Themes Topor returned to in his later novel Head-to-Toe Portrait of Suzanne (1978).
A new presentation of The Tenant by Roland Topor was released in October 2006. The book has Topor's original novel, a new introduction by Thomas Ligotti, a selection of short stories by Topor, a representation of Topor's artwork and an essay on the famous Roman Polanski film version. There is a working possibility of having Mr. Polanski write a new foreword to this edition.
In 2018, Atlas Press published Topor's Head-to-Toe Portrait of Suzanne, translated and introduced by Andrew Hodgson. It was the first of Topor's novels to enter English in nearly 50 years.
Roland Topor wrote the novel The Tenant (Le Locataire chimérique, 1964), which was adapted to film by Roman Polanski in 1976. The Tenant is the story of a Parisian of Polish descent, who develops an obsession regarding what has happened to his apartment's previous tenant. It is a chilling exploration of alienation and identity, asking disturbing questions about how we define ourselves. The later novel Joko's Anniversary (1969), another fable about loss of identity, is a vicious satire on social conformity. Themes Topor returned to in his later novel Head-to-Toe Portrait of Suzanne (1978).
A new presentation of The Tenant by Roland Topor was released in October 2006. The book has Topor's original novel, a new introduction by Thomas Ligotti, a selection of short stories by Topor, a representation of Topor's artwork and an essay on the famous Roman Polanski film version. There is a working possibility of having Mr. Polanski write a new foreword to this edition.
In 2018, Atlas Press published Topor's Head-to-Toe Portrait of Suzanne, translated and introduced by Andrew Hodgson. It was the first of Topor's novels to enter English in nearly 50 years.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
July 4, 2021
“Cuando sea grande, me acostaré con la reina”Leo esta colección de cuentos tras terminar “Caza de conejos”,, de Mario Levrero, y no he podido estar más acertado en esta concatenación de lecturas. Ambas obras son paisanas del mismo universo y fantásticamente editadas por Libros del Zorro Rojo.
En sus relatos, Topor abre con un negrísimo escarpelo una grieta en la vulgar realidad de sus criaturas por la que se cuelan lógicas absurdas en la frontera de la verosimilitud desmontando nuestra supuesta cordura, humillando nuestra inteligencia, trastocando el rumbo de nuestro sentido común, riéndose, con nosotros y a pesar de nosotros, de nuestros miedos, de nuestros sueños, de nuestras vanidades, de nuestras seguridades, burlándose de nuestros modos y maneras. En sus cuentos –a lo más de tres o cuatro páginas, a menudo de un solo párrafo y alguno hay de una sola frase- Topor exagera nuestros tics mostrándonos su vertiente más ridícula en originalísimas caricaturas que mezclan la crueldad, la irreverencia, lo escatológico, lo herético, la incorrección, lo monstruoso o lo grotesco para expresar una idea clara, sencilla y lúcida.
No destaca Topor por su estilo literario, no hay sesudas lucubraciones ni relatos paralelos, no hay lirismos ni frases esculturales, todo es directo, crudo, breve. En lo que sí sobresale con un personalísimo estilo es en su desmadrada originalidad e imaginación, en su siempre inesperada vuelta de tuerca, en su canto a la libertad y contra el dogmatismo, la hipocresía y la intolerancia.
Disfruten… si se lo merecen.
June 29, 2017
Four roses for Lucienne is a mélange of macabre and dark humour, tragedy and satire, grotesque and absurdity. Truly explosive mixture, not always easily digestible. So as you see it’s not a book for everyone.
If you feel insulted by picture of Jesus slipping on banana skin while walking on the water – stay rather away. If you have a delicate heart or stomach or both – don’t read a story about unlucky tourists bogged down in the mountains. If you should happen to believe in Santa Clause yet – you’d better listen to me and don’t read it. What’s more, don’t let him come into your house.
But from the other side if you want to get answer to puzzle about a man who was alive a quarter before his death –read it. If you want to know how ugly woman turns into a really beauty – read it. Was it whisky ? Maybe, although it could be a whale oil as well. With Topor you never know.
If you are curious how bizarre fairy fulfilled a wish of maltreated boy to not seeing his parents anymore – read it. What did she do? I can only say: be careful what you wish for.
December 20, 2024
Qué bien me la he pasado leyendo está antología. He descubierto varios relatos del autor que nunca había leído y me han encantado.
Totalmente recomendado.
Totalmente recomendado.
December 31, 2022
Un excepcional libro de cuentos de Roland Topor, el escritor de "El quimérico inquilino", que aquí nos presenta una variada colección de cuentos que tienen poderosas dosis de humor negro y surrealismo.
En este conjunto de microrrelatos, fábulas y narraciones de difícil categorización y a través de través de un humor negro trepidante, Topor se mofa sin vergüenza de la sociedad y de la apariencia que todo ser humano muestra a los demás.
Son muchos cuentos y muy variados pero destacaría el del escultor cuyas estatuas cobran vida propia y se largan a vivir la vida que me pareció muy logrado.
En este conjunto de microrrelatos, fábulas y narraciones de difícil categorización y a través de través de un humor negro trepidante, Topor se mofa sin vergüenza de la sociedad y de la apariencia que todo ser humano muestra a los demás.
Son muchos cuentos y muy variados pero destacaría el del escultor cuyas estatuas cobran vida propia y se largan a vivir la vida que me pareció muy logrado.
March 17, 2014
It's a book made of shorts stories. It is terribly funny. A monument of black humour. Topor is a great draughtsman. His drawings and watercolours are splendid. Some modern XVIII°. He is also a great writer. one of his books, "the chimerical tenant" was adapted to cinema by Polanski. The mittel-Europa influence is obvious and I think to Kafka. He carried elsewhere the same small bowler hat as him. He exploited this resemblance. But a Kafka destroy, who drunk whisky and smoked havane. And funny, terribly funny. He carried out the decorations of the first opera of Ligeti "Le Grant Macabre" it was perfect.
The Christmas night, a young boy who lives in a terrible bad condition with his family, do the wish to see a fairy. It comes It is terribly ugly. I don't dare to tell you the end but it is terribly funny. I have a little Topor's drawing in my bedroom. Every time I see it I think to Topor, his acute laughter, his bowler hat and cigar
The Christmas night, a young boy who lives in a terrible bad condition with his family, do the wish to see a fairy. It comes It is terribly ugly. I don't dare to tell you the end but it is terribly funny. I have a little Topor's drawing in my bedroom. Every time I see it I think to Topor, his acute laughter, his bowler hat and cigar
July 8, 2017
Cinco estrellas a la combinación de los relatos de Topor con las ilustraciones de Pat Andrea. La edición es estupenda, y Roland Topor ha de ser de los pocos autores capaz de arrancarte una carcajada contando, por ejemplo, cómo un autobús escolar se despeña por un barranco. Perverso, negrísimo, delicioso.
October 28, 2020
JA! Buenísimoss
March 14, 2023
Esta colección de relatos grotescos me ha gustado mucho. Todas las historias tienen un toque de humor negro que me ha divertido mucho, además son muy cortas, que es algo que siempre me gusta. El autor sabe deformar la realidad para conseguir hacer una crítica del hombre y la sociedad que creo que es muy efectiva. Algunos pueden resultar desagradables por su crudeza o por la cantidad de gore y los temas perturbadores que se tocan, hay que tener algo de estómago para disfrutar estos relatos. Sin embargo, si puedes soportar un poco de vísceras y unos personajes con personalidades estrambóticas, creo que te pueden gustar mucho. Las ilustraciones son fantásticas y se ve que se ha puesto mucho espero en la publicación de este libro.
December 28, 2021
This book is in French. Despite having spent years in high school in French immersion, my French is pretty lousy. I had to read this book with Google Translate at the ready. Reading and translating as I went may have been the most fun part of reading the book. It was like cracking a code.
There was a time when these stories were shocking and offensive. Nowadays they're pretty tame. Except maybe the one story where Santa Claus sodomizes a guy. And the one with the crashed school bus full of dying children. (That one was my favourite -- La classe dans l'abîme, The School in the Abyss)
Lots of little, silly, surreal stories. Some make no sense at all. Whether that's my lousy understanding of French or the author's sense of humour, it's hard to say.
The title story involves how whenever a man drinks four roses whiskey, his wife because objectively beautiful. Everyone can see it. But he can't keep drinking because it's killing him. He ends up in the hospital. When he gets out, he goes home, dreading it. But his wife is beautiful. And the punchline of the story: she's making it happen by drinking cod liver oil, which also makes her husband beautiful.
...what? I don't get it. I reread the ending. Checked my translation. Tried to divine why cod liver oil would be funny.
I'm utterly baffled.
Several stories were like that. And some are just dumb. Jesus is walking on water, slips on a banana peel, and breaks his neck on a wave. I guess that's shocking and funny? Maybe?
I'm glad I read it. I did make it all the way through. Each story was super short and felt like it could go anywhere. Which is part of why the book was fun.
There was a time when these stories were shocking and offensive. Nowadays they're pretty tame. Except maybe the one story where Santa Claus sodomizes a guy. And the one with the crashed school bus full of dying children. (That one was my favourite -- La classe dans l'abîme, The School in the Abyss)
Lots of little, silly, surreal stories. Some make no sense at all. Whether that's my lousy understanding of French or the author's sense of humour, it's hard to say.
The title story involves how whenever a man drinks four roses whiskey, his wife because objectively beautiful. Everyone can see it. But he can't keep drinking because it's killing him. He ends up in the hospital. When he gets out, he goes home, dreading it. But his wife is beautiful. And the punchline of the story: she's making it happen by drinking cod liver oil, which also makes her husband beautiful.
...what? I don't get it. I reread the ending. Checked my translation. Tried to divine why cod liver oil would be funny.
I'm utterly baffled.
Several stories were like that. And some are just dumb. Jesus is walking on water, slips on a banana peel, and breaks his neck on a wave. I guess that's shocking and funny? Maybe?
I'm glad I read it. I did make it all the way through. Each story was super short and felt like it could go anywhere. Which is part of why the book was fun.
August 7, 2012
A wonderful collection of short stories I read for the first time more than fifteen years ago and have reread several times since then, though now that I think about it 'wonderful' may not be the best way to describe them. As is the case with many collections of short stories, the quality here is not entirely consistent, but over all these do form a coherent whole. These stories somehow manage to be irreverent, shocking and even revolting without crossing the line into being downright disgusting. Still, this book is not for everyone (in fact I'm not even sure if it is even available in English, but if you can handle the French, it is definitely worth a shot).
And finally a word about the book description: even though that seems to be in Polish (I think), the ISBN is that of the French edition.
And finally a word about the book description: even though that seems to be in Polish (I think), the ISBN is that of the French edition.
October 24, 2018
Makabryczne, pełne czarnego humoru, ale też goryczy, przerażające (mnie), ale jednocześnie fascynujące. Nie znam Topora światopoglądowo/prywatnie, więc oceniam tylko jego prozę (doszły do mnie pogłoski, że jest bardzo prawicowy, a zawsze mnie to odstrasza), i jest bardzo dobrze.
April 5, 2021
Moja ukochana książka
February 26, 2025
Entretenidos, por lo general. Algunos están divertidos, otros pues sin más. Un libro pa pasar el rato.
November 30, 2025
- Reescritura paródica: Según Domingo Pujante (2023), el arte de Topor es un acto político y estético que busca la liberación, rechazando los conceptos inamovibles y los "tabúes" que la sociedad presenta como fronteras infranqueables. Su universo "Panique" (movimiento conformado por Fernando Arrabal, Alejandro Jodorowsky y Roland Topor, en 1962) utiliza el humor lúdico y subversivo, a menudo humor "negro”, para dar cuenta del lado cruel y monstruoso de la existencia humana. En última instancia, Topor logra construir un mundo original que expresa una "protesta de irreconciliación con la indignidad". Como motivos recurrentes del libro, se encuentra las parodias de 4 instituciones sociales: Matrimonio, Familia, Escuela y Religión.
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January 30, 2025Estoy entre ponerle 2 o 3 estrellas. Por une parte, hay demasiados cuentos que o me resultaron aburridos o que no entendí simplemente. Pocos se salvan pero aquellos que se salvan sí que valen la pena ser leidos.
Por otra parte, puedo afirmar el hecho de que me gusta la ironía de Topor, a veces explicita y en otros momentos implícita, pero sobre todo, como critica a la religión. Esa fue la cosa que me resultó más graciosa.
Por otra parte, puedo afirmar el hecho de que me gusta la ironía de Topor, a veces explicita y en otros momentos implícita, pero sobre todo, como critica a la religión. Esa fue la cosa que me resultó más graciosa.
April 21, 2022
This book is #21 in a series published by Bruna, in the Netherlands, between 1971 and 1976. There are 29 books in this series and I own all of them. I used to go shopping for food every Thursday, and on the way back home I stopped at the bookstore to buy myself a book. Those were the days...
January 13, 2023
Opowiadania: obrzydliwe, zaskakujące, rewelacyjne. Czarny humor w pełnej okazałości. Teksty raczej krótkie, niektóre zawierają tylko kilka linijek, dzięki temu czyta się szybko i w każdych okolicznościach.
February 14, 2023
topor idealnie trafia w punkt styczności absurdu, makabry i humoru - tak dobrze, tak magicznie, że zapominałam o tym, iż alkohol upiększający twoją żonę nie istnieje, a ludzie nie posyłają swoich wnętrzności w beczkach (chyba).
March 31, 2025
Only a few of these short stories are decent. Those where you have macabre for macabre are rather poor, not really funny, not the best taste. I remember some of them from my childhood, they seemed at least interesting then. Today I was just rolling my eyes often.
October 14, 2018
Dla miłośników czarnego humoru - błyskotliwego i dosadnego - cudowna pozycja.
April 14, 2022
Cuentos gamberros y dadaístas.
https://liblit.com/roland-topor-acost...
https://liblit.com/roland-topor-acost...
May 20, 2022
Sin duda el mejor libro que he leído en lo que va del año. El repertorio de historias y rarezas es abundante y variado, nunca se vuelve aburrido y es hilarante hasta el final, sin ser pretencioso ni exagerado, justamente lo que me gusta leer. Por si fuera poco las ilustraciones son (en especial las de color) excelentes.
November 10, 2024
Los relatos de Topor son un delicatessen exquisito. 👌🏻✨
July 15, 2024
Bardzo się zawiodłam, a uwielbiam czarny humor. Topora uważam za niekonwencjonalnego pisarza, który doskonale operuje językiem i potrafi zakończyć utwór/ fragment dobitną puentą. ..
i udowodnił to w niektórych opwoadaniach takich jak: „Sznycel górski”, „Ciężka operacja”, „Prawda o Ludwiku XVII”, „Wstrętny charakter”, „Opowieść wigilijna” czy słynna, chyba najlepsza ze zboru „Szkoła w przepaści” (tych tekstów można by było się uczyć na pamięć), ale w reszcie zbioru - humor dość prymitywny albo zakończenie, którego się spodziewałam. Opowiadania trochę pisane na jedno kopyto. „Wróżka inna niż wszystkie”, „Bez kompleksów” - tragedia. Dobrze, że chociaż czyta się lekko.
i udowodnił to w niektórych opwoadaniach takich jak: „Sznycel górski”, „Ciężka operacja”, „Prawda o Ludwiku XVII”, „Wstrętny charakter”, „Opowieść wigilijna” czy słynna, chyba najlepsza ze zboru „Szkoła w przepaści” (tych tekstów można by było się uczyć na pamięć), ale w reszcie zbioru - humor dość prymitywny albo zakończenie, którego się spodziewałam. Opowiadania trochę pisane na jedno kopyto. „Wróżka inna niż wszystkie”, „Bez kompleksów” - tragedia. Dobrze, że chociaż czyta się lekko.
January 8, 2010
Collection of dark humor shorts. I mostly read this to try reading in Polish, throughout realized it was just a translation. There were a lot of novel situations characters got put in that made you debate what you would do, some stories weren't too developed, and some ended abruptly for comic effect. All in all not too disappointing.
July 5, 2015
This tiny book is dark and grotesque, disturbing and disgusting - it also is utterly hilarious.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews