André Gide Libri

One of France's greatest modern writers examines his fascination with true crime and justice

Exploring life within a totalitarian regime, the narrative offers a poignant testimony of disillusionment experienced by those who once believed in a socialist utopia. Through an informal style, Gide invites readers into Stalin's Soviet Union, vividly illustrating the stark contrast between idealism and harsh reality. This work serves as an essential read for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of totalitarianism from an insider's perspective.

Shatters various images of Andre Gide as the querulous and impious Buddha to a quarter-century of intellectuals.

The story centers on a blind girl adopted by a pastor's large family, exploring the resulting turmoil and friction. This novella by André Gide, a Nobel Prize-winning French author known for his exploration of freedom and intellectual sincerity, offers a rich narrative that resonates with fans of his work. The modern edition includes a new biography, making it a valuable addition to any literary collection, especially as classic works like this become increasingly rare and sought after.

During the author's travels, he meets Menalcas, a caricature of Oscar Wilde, who relates his fantastic life story. But for all his brilliance, Menalcas is only Gide's yesterday self, a discarded wraith who leaves Gide free to stop exalting the ego and embrace bodily and spiritual joy.

Set in the 1890s, Andre Gide's famous satire centres around a group of ingenious fraudsters ('The Millipede') who convince their wealthy victims that the pontiff has been imprisoned in the Vatican cellars, and a false Pope has been enthroned in his place. Posing as clergy, they con money by promising to obtain the true Pope's release and restoration. The book features one of Gide's most memorable creations: the amoral Lafcadio, who in pushing a man from a moving train commits the ultimate motiveless crime.

Theseus, mythical hero of Athens, narrates his life story in an existential vacuum following the failure of his marriages, the death of his son, Hippolytus, his own famous exploits a distant memory. Tragedy punctuates this narrative, as it does his drama, Oedipus, also published here, both works elaborating through myth an unanswerable search for self.

Michel had been a blindfold scholar until, newly married, he contracted tuberculosis. His will to recover brings self-discovery and the growing desire to rebel against his background of culture, decency and morality. But the freedom from constraints that Michel finds on his restless travels is won at great cost.