André Maurois (1885–1967)

Two books? Two books! TWO BOOKS IN ONE!!!
That's right ladies and gentlemen, André Maurois' 1928 novel Climates is two books in one! The story of love, marriage, and infidelity is told once in the story of Odile and Phillipe, then again in Phillipe's marriage to Isabelle. It's the same story twice. Except it's not. And oh is it painful the second time around.
Maurois has been compared to Tolstoy, and I certainly believe there are stylistic parallels. The slowly unraveling story of an show more unraveling marriage, Climates bears much of the psychological insight of Anna Karenina without nearly as many tangents. That said, Tolstoy surely would have found Maurois' novel vulgar with its frank (for the time) discussion of sex. And it's clear there is a little bit of Anna and, even more so, Natasha Rostova in the character of Odile.
Moving on from comparisons, Climates starts out fine. Odile and Phillipe are an interesting couple and the way their romance plays out feels genuine. The dynamics of their relationships, with one another and with others, are great. The plight of a desperate man, enamored with an impulsive, irresponsible young woman is felt on nearly every page.
The second half tries to tell the same story, this time between Phillipe and Isabelle. Maurois uses the same gorgeous prose to advance his story, but the story itself feels clunky here. Isabelle strikes me as a strong-willed woman, yet she is constantly at the mercy of Phillipe. His every wrong is somehow her fault. Perhaps she should've done more to foster his abuse of her—she could've at least thrown herself at his feet to beg forgiveness for his adultery... oh wait, she did that. This misogyny, though indicative of some sentiments of the time, make the second half of this novel painful. By this point, I don't care anymore for Phillipe. I don't even feel bad for Isabelle because she wants to be a doormat. And what is otherwise a gorgeously written, heartbreaking love story becomes a chore to get through (and an exercise in eye rolls).
Climates: it could've been so much more, but sometimes, less is more. show less

I came across a first edition of this book, complete with dust wrapper, in a Blue Cross charity shop. It is inscribed by someone called Gordon Pirie, dated March 1953. I looked up the autograph of the famous British long distance runner with this name but the signatures do not coincide. I removed the price sticker from the front of the dust wrapper and this action has lifted a layer of paper in the top right hand corner. More recent biographies are of course more distant than this one show more written less than 25 years after Proust's death. It covers the life of the great author as well as literary analysis and evolution of A la recherche du temps perdu. There are excellent chapters on Love and its passions and Humour. Maurois makes the case that the purpose of the work is to convey the universal truth of human behaviour and psychology. It may seem to be about a defunct aristocratic section of society but it is not so. Through the characters and their behaviour, faults come through at every level - we are all monsters. It is a demanding and fascinating biography. show less

Andre Maurois seems to be in the tradition of the ancient Greeks, His histories have a wonderful lyrical quality to them that almost sing to the reader. This is especially true of Disraeli. The intimacy involved is like your brother or sister who dearly love you but know all to well your weaknesses as well as your strengths. Victorian politics and society are at the center of this. We see Disraeli cruelly destroying prime minster Robert Peel with his exquisite, damning, surgical speeches show more before Parliament. There were many women in Disraeli's life. The most important to history was that of the growing and endearing relationship with Queen Victoria. This takes place at the height of the British empire and the issues and actions around the subjugated peoples and empire building are hardly mentioned. One does not have to like history or biography to enjoy this book.

Quotes: (pages 71-72) “His deep interest in history led him to seek out old people. One of his closest women friends was the aged Lady Cork, who still, in spite of her eighty-seven years, entertained guests every evening. She was the prettiest and most diverting of dowagers. The heroes and heroines of her youth, of her maturity, and then of her old age, favorites, soldiers, poets, had all vanished. She had seen revolutions in every country of the world; she remembered Brighton when it was a fishing harbour, and Manchester as a village. But she still remained unaltered, alert and gay, thirsting for amusement and novelty. Finding both wit and and curiosity in this young man, she accorded him her protection, a powerful one, in the social world.”

(page 183) ...“'He, too, was called a traitor, and he, too, vindicated himself. 'True it is,' said he, 'I did place myself at the head of a great armada; true it is that my sovereign embraced me; true it is that all the muftis in the Empire offered up prayers for the expedition; but I have an objection to war. I see no use in prolonging the struggle, and the only reason I had for accepting the command was that I might terminate the contest by betraying my master.' (Tremendous Tory cheering.)'

Free Trade or Protection, Disraeli was ready to grant that a man could prefer one to the other, but what was intolerable was that a Parliament elected to carry out one of those policies should boast carrying out the other, that a man designated to his Sovereign by the confidence of a party should now come forward and say that the confidence of that Sovereign permitted him to scorn that party, and that he cared little for the judgment passed b the House, because he was sure of that which would be passed by posterity.

The cheers lasted for several minute, and were addressed not merely to the artist or orator; the statesman now could feel himself on solid ground. At the close of the sitting Disraeli was surrounded by the country gentlemen, talking of a formation of a Protectionist party in the Commons, to oppose the Prime Minister.”

(pages 260-261) “To leave Grosvenor Gate, where he had spent thirty-three happy years, was like a second partying from Mary Anne. Here was the house she had waited for him, night after night,which he could see shinning from afar in the fog when he came home after a trying sitting. Here was the domestic hearth, the cozy spot where body and soul are relaxed, where criticism becomes praise, and blame, a caress. Never again, no doubt, wold he know the kindliness of true shelter. The loneliness of the hotel, the worst loneliness of all, alive only with stupid furniture, dreary meals and unknown neighbors---such would be his London life henceforth. When he called to his coachman 'Home,' he remembered suddenly that he no longer had a home, and his eyes filled with tears. Without his secretary, Montagu Corry, who watched over him like a son, without friends like the Manners or the Rothschilds to welcome him, he would have been a wreck. But no friendship, however fine, can replace the fondness of a woman. In the silence of his hotel room, he watched memory fleeing from a certain gay voice” show less

So this starts off with a delightful little prelude about a child inventing the imaginary world of Mape... which we never hear about again :( .
The main story then starts, which is divided into 3 parts, subtitled the Writer, the Reader and the Interpreter.
The Writer describes the real events which informed Goethe's [b: Sorrows of Young Werther|16640|The Sorrows of Young Werther|Johann Wolfgang von Goethe|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1386920896s/16640.jpg|746264]. The Reader is about a show more frenchman who, supposedly inspired by the works of Balzac, gets into a love affair. And the Interpreter is about the life of famous british actress Mrs.Siddons.

The writing is good and its an easy read. While i doubt the accuracy, the biographical and historical details are intriguing and the author paints some nice scenes.

However given the opening.. parable?, metaphor?.. whatever that was, plus the chapter subtitles, this is clearly advertised as an examination of our relationship with fiction and while technically these stories fit, its very clear that the theme was created to tie together these disparate tales, rather than the tales being written on a theme.

Also i was very close to deducting a star during the last story. Putting aside some melodramatic elements which seemed written, not just set, in the 1700s. The narrative clearly sets up the actresses problem with performing Lady Macbeth (which would become her most famous role), however it then wanders completely off the topic, in the same way this whole book wanders off topic, leading to a frustrating conclusion.

What you get is quite enjoyable but the author really needs to stop moving the football. show less