When I find a person, a book, or an author that I find really interesting, I like to investigate to see what THEY found interesting. That is how I eventually came to Balzac. I had just finished reading Sin in the Second City (a fantastic history of a high class brothel in the early days of Chicago), and it mentioned that the Mistresses of the Everleigh club schooled the prostitutes and many lessons focused on Balzac. I thought that I should look into Balzac myself.

His prose is breathtaking.

This isn’t even recognized as one of his best works. The series is mind-bogglingly huge, and I just randomly picked this one out because it was on Librivox and I didn’t feel like going to the library to borrow a paperback. I was floored. Every word was perfect, profound, heart rending and true. Oh so so true. Perhaps this sounds ridiculous, but the story was lyrical, and symphony of sights and sounds that just stab at you with a sort of sweet pain.

I read something about him that stated he never stopped revising editions, to the great dismay of his editors. I think it such a shame that I don’t speak or read French, because this work was so beautiful in English, that I cannot imagine its perfection in its original language. It reminds me of the Mark Twain quote “The difference between the almost right word & the right word is really a large matter--it's the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”

I fully intend on reading the complete works of Honore de Balzac, and any aspiring writer
or lover of the art of literature should invest some time in him.

Scintillating is a good word to describe this actual story. It’s full of lust, jealousy, deceit, really powerful chaotic emotion. It’s wonderful. Who needs Desperate Housewives? I’ve got BALZAC!

introduction à balzac. plutôt intéressante, même si j’ai eu du mal avec la première partie, la longue description des relations de cette petite société parisienne ne m’a pas passionné. mais hormis ça, c’était très prenant, et tragique
slay honoré

* citations que j’aime bien:
"tu es, foi d'honnête homme, une charade vivante dont le mot me semble bien difficile à trouver."
"elle est morte. – de quoi? – de la poitrine."

Es necesario encontrarse en un estado de cuidadosa concentración para empezar a leer 'La muchacha de los ojos de oro'. Es muy fácil perderse en —e incluso encontrar tediosas— las primeras 30 páginas del libro si no se está centrado. Es un detallado estudio sobre el parisino del siglo XIX, que podría extenderse a una definición de la conducta del hombre, desde el proletario hasta el burgués. Son páginas perspicaces, con una voz inconforme y confrontadora, casi furiosa y condescendiente. Una vez establecido todo esto, de golpe, comienza la historia de Henri de Marsay, con un impulso y momento increíbles. Nunca había leído —me parece— una introducción tan minuciosa (que se sintió, en buen sentido, como un estudio de decenas de libros) como la hace Balzac en 'La muchacha de los ojos de oro'. A partir de allí, si se fue capaz de abrazar la redacción de Honoré hasta el momento, compartir la intriga de Henri —mientras se le reprueba su narcisismo— hacia la muchacha de los ojos de oro es un camino recto en el que se levita por inercia, en el que se exploran con relevancia las etapas del enamoramiento de un hombre vanidoso.

La más grande virtud de esta novela de 'La historia de los trece' es la meticulosidad de su redacción y su ritmo.

Amazing and so bizarre! I read this because I heard Balzac wrote a book about lesbians. I was left with a lot of questions. I hope you will read it so we can talk about it.

J'ai adoré ce court roman! L'écriture de Balzac est magnifique, pourquoi ne l'ai-je pas lu plus tôt? J'ai besoin de plus de livres de cet auteur maintenant.

ce n’est pas seulement par plaisanterie que Paris a été nommé un enfer. Tenez ce mot pour vrai. Là, tout fume, tout brûle, tout brille, tout bouillonne, tout flambe, s’évapore, s’éteint, se rallume, étincelle, pétille et se consume.

Remerciements à Graingolin pour contribuer à l'édition audio gratuite Librivox

I used to dislike in realism how many of its authors renounced the means of literary expression in a quest for true representation. As you can see, Balzac has to time for such a timid approach and hits the ground running. Hyperbola and excellent use of tempo are weighted down by the verbose overflow necessary to discuss the three cursed circles of Paris.

j'ai mieux aimé ce livre que j'imaginais. La fin est assez troublante.