Category Archives: literature

AKA The Sinful Priest / The Sin of Father Mouret / Abbé Mouret’s Transgression / The Demise of Father Mouret After the tedium of La Conquete de Plassans I was reluctant to pick up another book about the misdeeds of … Continue reading →

AKA The Conquest of Plassans or A Priest in the House It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these, and for good reason. While the first three books in the series were a breeze to get through, this … Continue reading →

AKA “The Belly Of Paris” or “The Fat and The Thin” As I began to read this I thought it was the third in the Rougon-Macquart series – and it is, in a sense. It’s the third to be written, … Continue reading →

AKA “The Kill” The second book in the Rougon-Macquart series takes a secondary character from the first novel, and transplants him to a new place with a more flexible class structure, an even more flexible morality, extravagant opulence and opportunities … Continue reading →

AKA “The Fortune Of The Rougons” The first book in a series is often the most famous. Even if later works have much greater success, it will be revisited by readers, curious about the back-story of the characters – especially … Continue reading →

When I was 18 one of my ‘world of zines’ correspondents recommended a book called Germinal by a writer called Émile Zola. Back then I was even more open to new suggestions than I am now, so I dutifully went … Continue reading →