The 15 writers featured in this new anthology of French short stories represent the best of the genre, from Merimee to the present day. The selection includes writers as diverse as Balzac, Colette, Duras and Boulanger and is designed to introduce students to both the modern French short story and modern French literature in general. The anthology covers a wide range of texts and reflects the contribution of women writers. Not only is there a substantial introduction covering the history of the short story, thematic trends, developments in narrative technique and the notion of genre, but each story also comes with its own preface and notes. The editor's intentions are to enhance students' appreciation and understanding of individual stories at the same time as introducing a variety of critical ideas and perspectives, many of them reflecting recent developments in literary theory.
Although some of the selections are not the most well-known, the authors featured comprise an excellent array of modernist writers. As a survey of modernist French short stories, this is a valuable and readable collection.
Modern French Short Fiction: An Anthology
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 17 years ago
The use of the word "modern" in the title was deceiving. I wanted a book that would help me with current popular vocabulary. The first story in the book was written in 1829 and over half the stories were written in the nineteenth century. Other than that complaint I found the stories entertaining and well written. I was able to read each story in roughly an hour, so it fit in well with my plan to read in French for an hour each day.
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