Books with author GUSTAVE FLAUBERT

Madame Bovary takes place in provincial northern France, near the town of Rouen in Normandy. Charles Bovary is a shy, oddly dressed teenager arriving at a new school where his new classmates ridicule him. Charles struggles his way to a second-rate medical degree and becomes an Officier de santé in the Public Health Service. He marries the woman his mother has chosen for him, the unpleasant but supposedly rich widow Héloïse Dubuc. He sets out to build a practice in the village of Tôtes. One day, Charles visits a local farm to set the owner's broken leg and meets his patient's daughter, Emma Rouault. Emma is a beautiful, poetically dressed young woman who has received a "good education" in a convent. She has a powerful yearning for luxury and romance inspired by reading popular novels. Charles is immediately attracted to her, and visits his patient far more often than necessary, until Héloïse's jealousy puts a stop to the visits.When Héloïse unexpectedly dies, Charles waits a decent interval before courting Emma in earnest. Her father gives his consent, and Emma and Charles marry.

With an Introduction by Roger Clark, University of Kent at Canterbury Castigated for offending against public decency, Madame Bovary has rarely failed to cause a storm. For Flaubert's contemporaries, the fascination came from the novelist's meticulous account of provincial matters. For the writer, subject matter was subordinate to his anguished quest for aesthetic perfection. For his twentieth-century successors the formal experiments that underpin Madame Bovary look forward to the innovations of contemporary fiction. Flaubert s protagonist in particular has never ceased to fascinate. Romantic heroine or middle-class neurotic, flawed wife and mother or passionate protester against the conventions of bourgeois society, simultaneously the subject of Flaubert s admiration and the butt of his irony - Emma Bovary remains one of the most enigmatic of fictional creations. Flaubert's meticulous approach to the craft of fiction, his portrayal of contemporary reality, his representation of an unforgettable cast of characters make Madame Bovary one of the major landmarks of modern fiction.

"‘Madame Bovary’ has a perfection that not only stamps it, but that makes it stand almost alone: it holds itself with such a supreme unapproachable assurance as both excites and defies judgment." —Henry James"Ever since ‘Madame Bovary’, the art of the novel has been considered equal to the art of poetry." —Milan Kundera"From the narrative point of view, the most perfect book is ‘Madame Bovary’ by Flaubert." —Giorgio de Chirico"Stylistically it is prose doing what poetry is supposed to do." —Vladimir Nabokov"‘Madame Bovary’ show Flaubert as the pioneer of our age, the portraitist and philosopher of the modern world." —Émile Zola"Possibly the most beautifully written book ever composed; undoubtedly the most beautifully written novel… a book that invites superlatives… the most important novel of the century." —Frank O’ConnorThis exquisite novel tells the story of one of the most compelling heroines in modern literature — Emma Bovary. Unhappily married to a devoted, clumsy provincial doctor, Emma revolts against the ordinariness of her life by pursuing voluptuous dreams of ecstasy and love. But her sensuous and sentimental desires lead her only to suffering corruption and downfall. A brilliant psychological portrait, Madame Bovary searingly depicts the human mind in search of transcendence. Who is Madame Bovary? Flaubert's answer to this question was superb: "Madame Bovary, c'est moi." Acclaimed as a masterpiece upon its publication in 1857, the work catapulted Flaubert to the ranks of the world's greatest novelists.

A short quote from the first chapter: "SALAMMBO CHAPTER THE FEAST was Hamilcar gardens Megara the outskirts Carthage The soldiers whom had commanded Sicily were celebrating with great feast the anniversary the battle Eryx The captains wearing bronze cothurns were seated the central avenue beneath purple canopy fringed with gold extending from the stable walls one side the first terrace the palace the other while the majority the common soldiers were dispersed under the trees Farther the gardens were number flat roofed structures comprising winepresses wine cellars"...

How is this book unique? 15 Illustrations are included Short Biography is also includedOriginal & Unabridged EditionTablet and e-reader formattedBest fiction books of all timeOne of the best books to readClassic historical fiction booksBestselling FictionMadame Bovary (1856) is the French writer Gustave Flaubert's debut novel. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life. Though the basic plot is rather simple, even archetypal, the novel's true art lies in its details and hidden patterns. Flaubert was a notorious perfectionist and claimed always to be searching for le mot juste ("the precise word"). When the novel was first serialized in La Revue de Paris between 1 October 1856 and 15 December 1856, public prosecutors attacked the novel for obscenity. The resulting trial in January 1857 made the story notorious. After Flaubert's acquittal on 7 February 1857, Madame Bovary became a bestseller in April 1857 when it was published as a single volume. The novel is now considered Flaubert's masterpiece, as well as a seminal work of literary realism and one of the most influential novels. British critic James Wood writes in How Fiction Works: "Flaubert established for good or ill, what most readers think of as modern realist narration and his influence is almost too familiar to be visible".

A critical masterpiece, Madame Bovary is the story of Emma Bovary’s search for passion and the consequences that follow. While deeply loved by her husband Charles, Emma is unhappy with the banality of her provincial life and seeks excitement in infidelity and living beyond her means. Left brokenhearted and penniless, the truth of Emma’s life ultimately destroys her and her family. Reflecting on the bourgeoisie of France in the early 19th century, Madame Bovary is Flaubert’s commentary on the wealthy’s romantic delusions and the impact such delusions have on the lives of everyone involved. Upon the publication of Madame Bovary in 1856, Gustave Flaubert was prosecuted for obscenity and offending public morals. In 1857 he was acquitted, and, aided by the publicity from the trial, Madame Bovary became a bestseller. It has been adapted for film, television, and theatre.

Emma Bovary, daughter of an uneducated farmer and wife of a dull doctor in northern France, harbors a passion for everything beyond her grasp—sophistication, romance, love, and deliverance from her banal provincial life. Motivated by the primal, idealized, and vain, she seeks adventure. And with each new endeavor, Emma sets for herself an inevitable and inescapable trap.Condemned as an affront to public morals, Madame Bovary’s obscenity trial made it notorious. Today, Emma stands as one of fiction’s most famous figures, and the novel itself, among the most pioneering and influential in world literature. AmazonClassics brings you timeless works from the masters of storytelling. Ideal for anyone who wants to read a great work for the first time or rediscover an old favorite, these new editions open the door to literature’s most unforgettable characters and beloved worlds.Revised edition: Previously published as Madame Bovary, this edition of Madame Bovary (AmazonClassics Edition) includes editorial revisions.

Madame Bovary by Gustave FlaubertHow is this book unique? Illustrations IncludedFree AudiobookMadame Bovary (1856) is the French writer Gustave Flaubert's debut novel. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life. Though the basic plot is rather simple, even archetypal, the novel's true art lies in its details and hidden patterns. Flaubert was a notorious perfectionist and claimed always to be searching for le mot juste ("the precise word"). When the novel was first serialized in La Revue de Paris between 1 October 1856 and 15 December 1856, public prosecutors attacked the novel for obscenity. The resulting trial in January 1857 made the story notorious. After Flaubert's acquittal on 7 February 1857, Madame Bovary became a bestseller in April 1857 when it was published as a single volume. The novel is now considered Flaubert's masterpiece, as well as a seminal work of literary realism and one of the most influential novels. British critic James Wood writes in How Fiction Works: "Flaubert established for good or ill, what most readers think of as modern realist narration and his influence is almost too familiar to be visible".

Salammbô" is an historical novel by Gustave Flaubert, published in 1862. Although the titular heroine is a fictional character, the novel’s setting of ancient Carthage and many characters are historically accurate, if highly romanticized.The novel is set in ancient Carthage just after the end of the first Punic War. Carthage has been defeated by the Romans and is nearly bankrupt. Being broke is always a problem, but it is made worse in Carthage’s case because they owe a huge amount in back pay to the mercenaries that they had been using to fight Rome. These battle hardened troops were camped outside the city..."Salammbô" is the story of the siege of Carthage in 240–237 BCE by mercenaries who had not been paid for their help in fighting the Romans. It is also the story of the love of Mathô, one of the mercenaries, for Salammbô, the daughter of Hamilcar, chief magistrate of Carthage.

At convent school, a girl acquires romantic notions of a lover who will live for her alone. She marries a kind but dull country doctor and discovers that "This life of hers was as cold as an attic that looks north; and boredom, quiet as the spider, was spinning its web in the shadowy places of her heart." Emma Bovary's quest for escape from the emptiness of her bourgeois existence leads to infidelity and financial extravagance, and Gustave Flaubert's powerful and deeply moving examination of her moral degeneration is universally regarded as a landmark of nineteenth-century fiction.Flaubert was brought to trial by the French government on the grounds of this novel's alleged immorality but narrowly escaped conviction. Madame Bovary remains a touchstone for literary discussions of provincial life and adultery as well as a summit of prose art, a pioneering work of realism that forever changed the way novels are written. This complete and unabridged edition features the classic translation by Eleanor Marx-Aveling.