stormhawk's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
rachsuzanne's review
3.0
Both short stories were interesting.
The Atheist's Mass is a beautiful tale of generosity.
The Conscript, less so.
The Atheist's Mass is a beautiful tale of generosity.
The Conscript, less so.
darwin8u's review
5.0
"I am like many pious men, men who appear to be profoundly religious but are quite atheistic as we are, you and I."
- Honoré de Balzac , "The Atheist's Mass"
Vol N° 41 of my Penguin [b:Little Black Classics Box Set|24611766|Little Black Classics Box Set|Various|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1432158376s/24611766.jpg|44222896]. This book contains two of Honoré de Balzac's short stories.
Included were:
1. "The Atheist's Mass" - ★★★★★
2. "The Conscript" - ★★★★
"The Atheist's Mass" or "La Messe de l'athée" killed me; ate me up and devoured me. Perhaps, it was the prose. It could be. It was clean, quotable, philosophic, humanistic. It is the kind of writing I could read for days at a time. But it was more than that. Balzac, in this story, seemed to capture the compexity and the nuance of man. The story is considered to be part of Balzac's Scènes de la vie privée in [b:La Comédie Humaine|19531031|La Comédie Humaine (1)|Honoré de Balzac|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|27654065]. "The Conscript" or "Le Réquisitionnaire" is a story about a French aristocrat, Mme de Dey, during the French Revolution (1793). She is balancing her social needs in Normandy while trying to protect her son's legacy.
Like several of the writers in this series, I knew Balzac by reputation. My wife has read several of his books. But I had never read a story or novel he had written. These two stories insure that I will dive a lot deeper into his books over the next several years.
- Honoré de Balzac , "The Atheist's Mass"
Vol N° 41 of my Penguin [b:Little Black Classics Box Set|24611766|Little Black Classics Box Set|Various|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1432158376s/24611766.jpg|44222896]. This book contains two of Honoré de Balzac's short stories.
Included were:
1. "The Atheist's Mass" - ★★★★★
2. "The Conscript" - ★★★★
"The Atheist's Mass" or "La Messe de l'athée" killed me; ate me up and devoured me. Perhaps, it was the prose. It could be. It was clean, quotable, philosophic, humanistic. It is the kind of writing I could read for days at a time. But it was more than that. Balzac, in this story, seemed to capture the compexity and the nuance of man. The story is considered to be part of Balzac's Scènes de la vie privée in [b:La Comédie Humaine|19531031|La Comédie Humaine (1)|Honoré de Balzac|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/book/50x75-a91bf249278a81aabab721ef782c4a74.png|27654065]. "The Conscript" or "Le Réquisitionnaire" is a story about a French aristocrat, Mme de Dey, during the French Revolution (1793). She is balancing her social needs in Normandy while trying to protect her son's legacy.
Like several of the writers in this series, I knew Balzac by reputation. My wife has read several of his books. But I had never read a story or novel he had written. These two stories insure that I will dive a lot deeper into his books over the next several years.
lnatal's review
3.0
Free download available at Project Gutenberg.
The original French text is available at La Bibliothèque électronique du Québec.
Opening lines:
Un médecin à qui la science doit une belle théorie physiologique, et qui, jeune encore, s'est placé parmi les célébrités de l'Ecole de Paris, centre de lumières auquel les médecins de l'Europe rendent tous hommage, le docteur Bianchon a longtemps pratiqué la chirurgie avant de se livrer à la médecine.
Scènes de la vie privée :
3* La maison du Chat-qui-pelote (1830)
3* Le bal de Sceaux (1830)
3* La Bourse (1830)
4* La Vendetta (1830)
3* Madame Firmiani (1832)
3* Une Double Famille (1830)
4* La paix du ménage (1830)
3* La Fausse Maîtresse (1842)
3* Étude de femme (1830)
4* Albert Savarus (1842)
4* Mémoires de Deux Jeunes Mariées (1841)
3* Le Colonel Chabert (1844, first published as La transaction, 1832)
4* Une fille d'Eve (1839)
3* La Femme Abandonee (1833)
4* La Grenadière (1832)
3* Le Message (1833)
3* Gobeseck (1830)
3* Autre Etude de Femme (1839-1842)
4* La Femme de Trente Ans (1834)
4* Le Contrat de Marriage (1835)
3* La Messe de L'Athee (1832)
The original French text is available at La Bibliothèque électronique du Québec.
Opening lines:
Un médecin à qui la science doit une belle théorie physiologique, et qui, jeune encore, s'est placé parmi les célébrités de l'Ecole de Paris, centre de lumières auquel les médecins de l'Europe rendent tous hommage, le docteur Bianchon a longtemps pratiqué la chirurgie avant de se livrer à la médecine.
Scènes de la vie privée :
3* La maison du Chat-qui-pelote (1830)
3* Le bal de Sceaux (1830)
3* La Bourse (1830)
4* La Vendetta (1830)
3* Madame Firmiani (1832)
3* Une Double Famille (1830)
4* La paix du ménage (1830)
3* La Fausse Maîtresse (1842)
3* Étude de femme (1830)
4* Albert Savarus (1842)
4* Mémoires de Deux Jeunes Mariées (1841)
3* Le Colonel Chabert (1844, first published as La transaction, 1832)
4* Une fille d'Eve (1839)
3* La Femme Abandonee (1833)
4* La Grenadière (1832)
3* Le Message (1833)
3* Gobeseck (1830)
3* Autre Etude de Femme (1839-1842)
4* La Femme de Trente Ans (1834)
4* Le Contrat de Marriage (1835)
3* La Messe de L'Athee (1832)
More...