Human Comedy: Scenes from Provincial Life

Honoré de Balzac's short story ´The illustrious Gaudissaart´ reveals the arrogance and prejudice on both sides of the city-country divide. When a slick salesman from the big city visits the provincial town of Vouvray, he is confident that the locals will buy anything. But Gaudissart's apparent belief in the doctrine of Saint-Simonianism, which teaches that industrialisation will empty the countryside and create a Utopian society of workers, riles a local man named Vernier. He tricks him into selling items to his unstable neighbour Margaritis, who convinces the salesman to buy two non-existent wine barrels. This vindictive practical joke then escalates into legal action and a dramatic duel ensues. For more insights into life in 1830s Europe, try Elizabeth Gaskell's 'Ruth' and 'North and South'.

With a sweeping narrative that features revolution, restoration, and colonial war, 'The Two Brothers' is Honore de Balzac at his masterful best. It focuses on the Bridau family, including Agathe, her two sons, and her elder brother, as they engage in increasingly undignified battles for their inheritance. The eldest son, Philippe, is a courageous soldier but a gambler and a crook. The youngest, Joseph, is a misunderstood artist. When the Bourbons are restored and Napoleon exiled, Philippe becomes embroiled in an anti-government conspiracy. Meanwhile, a mysterious "long-lost uncle" appears and worms his way into the family - with unsavoury intentions. With the plot's fuse lit, it burns through priceless paintings, racist persecution, a knife attack, a duel, and an explosive climax. If you like this, you will love 'Les Miserables' by Victor Hugo and 'A Tale of Two Cities' by Charles Dickens.

Lucien Chardon is a young man who wants nothing more than to become a notable poet. He lives in a small village, and it is not the place for an aspiring writer. When a married lady Madame de Bargeton offers Lucien help, he is more than ready to move to Paris. Paris, however, is not an easy place either. There might be more possibilities, but at the same time the big city and it's societies can be more cruel than Lucien could have ever imagined. 'Lost Illusions' is an intriguing novel written by Honoré de Balzac.

Spoiling a child is not just about letting them have a few extra sweets. In some cases, years of doting really do spoil them. Victurien d'Esgrignon was raised by his doting aunt and adoring father - a family high up in the aristocracy of Restoration France. As a young man, he is both intelligent and shallow: a liar and a cheat who ruins his family, their lawyer, and others drawn into his circle. Then he meets his match - a young man with the same cold heart and eye for an opportunity. Who will triumph in this race to the bottom? Honore de Balzac's 'The Collection of Antiquities' shines a bright light on the social and moral decline of the aristocracy in 1830s France. Fans of 'Les Miserables' by Victor Hugo and 'A Tale of Two Cities' by Charles Dickens will love this!

History lovers will revel in Balzac's social and political commentary of 19th century France in 'The Old Maid'. With skilful insight into the human experience, the life of a rich lady and her respective suitors reveal themselves page after page. A short and snappy read, Balzac crafts his characters with expert skill, peppered with satirical misfortunes. Part of his 'The Human Comedy' collection, 'The Old Maid' is ideal for fans of Xavier Giannolli's 2021 'Lost Illusions' film.

Felix was rejected as a child by his mother and those scars never fully heal. In a book with great emotional depth, Honore de Balzac explores Felix' two major adult relationships with women through the form of a single letter. With the beautiful, but married, Madame Mortsauf, maternal love grows into a passion - but never crosses into physical infidelity. As the years pass by, Felix falls for sensuous Englishwoman Lady Arabelle. Torn between "the wife of the spirit" and "the mistress of the flesh", he becomes the laughing stock of the French Court. How will he untie his emotional knot without causing emotional damage to the two women? The insights and descriptions are exquisite - and there is an unexpected twist at the end. 'The Lily of the Valley' is perfect reading for fans of other books featuring a love triangle, including Margaret Mitchell's 'Gone With the Wind' and Emily Brontë's 'Wuthering Heights'.

Eugenie Grandet' is one of the earliest and most famous novels in Balzac's 'The Human Comedy' cycle. The dreary Grandet household, inundated by the overwhelming greed and miserliness of Grandet himself, is rudely awakened from its suffocating bleakness by the arrival of young Eugenie's elegant and coiffed Parisian cousin Charles. Newly orphaned and without a cent to his name. Eugenie Charles' arrival is a light at the end of the tunnel and the start of an amorous blossoming. For the provincial Midas Grandet, it's the perfect opportunity to test the limits of his callousness. Little does Eugenie suspect, Grandet will not be the last unscrupulous individual close to her that she will have to grapple with. An extraordinarily incisive, moral yet entertaining story struck by tragedy, Balzac's 'Eugenie Grandet' presents a scathing social critique of provincial attitudes and greed in the aftermath of the French Revolution that still remains relevant today. It summons to mind the Charles Dickens classic 'Oliver Twist', but infused far more strongly with Balzac's trademark scathing sardonic wit.