- Paperback: 640 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint edition (Jun 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0143039229
- ISBN-13: 978-0143039228
- Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 14 x 4.2 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,026,442 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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6 reviews
57 of 61 people found the following review helpful
Holy Grail of literature
2 Oct 2005
Format:Paperback
If I had to send a single book to space martians, it would probably be Anna Karenina, the most concise powerhouse ever written. But as for sheer reading experience and linguistic ability, Proust is the grandmaster. In Search of Lost Time is the most staggering human achievement ever produced. Many of his famously long sentences contain more beauty than most people's complete bodies of literary work. I marvel that a human being was able to so beautifully and succinctly articulate, by using himself, the whole human experience. Proust's only rival in terms of felicity of language is Charles Dickens, but the former's subject matter is inarguably just so much more sophisticated than the latter's. I wish I could speak French just to read this masterpiece in its original language. I don't know if this translation is particularly better or worse, I just know the voice that comes through is unmistakably Proust's, and that's plenty. I am thrilled that I still have four volumes left to read, but I'm also greatly discouraged that no one else is reading them with me. Each time I tell people that I'm reading Proust, they either think I'm kidding or say, "you must be the only person in America to be doing that." Knowing that a piece of art like this is perennialy ignored in the museum while the line goes out the door for Thomas Kincaide's sugar packets is enough to make you want to hang yourself.
26 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Proust knows the way
29 Dec 2006
Format:Paperback
I've come to Proust quite late. I tried to read Remembrances many years ago but couldn't get my head around the extended sentences liberally convoluted with parenthesis. Recently I took another plunge and a different approach. I realized that to read Proust is a consuming commitment. The reader has to relinquish the comfort of the customary literary narrative. If you do this then the world of Proust will first entice you then become an obsessive pleasure into which you will eagerly immerse yourself.
Having said this now comes the question of which translation to read. I've read the first English translation by C.K. Scott Moncrieff published by Random House in 1927. I've also read the new Penguin translation of The Guermantes Way by Mark Treharne. The Penguin translations are "easier" to read and cater more to a 21st century sensibility. To my mind the restructuring of sentences at times, unfortunately, sacrifice the poetics of Proust's language in favor of adherence to modern grammatical convention. Montcrieff also had the advantage of doing his translation closer to the time in which Proust actually lived and worked; the flavor of this early translation feels more "authentic" and contemporaneous with the period. An example: The first sentence in Montcrieff's The Germantes Way reads: "The twittering of the birds at daybreak..." Treharne's reads: "The early-morning twitter of the birds..." Does this matter? It's your call.
Read the Penguins if this gets you into Proust. But don't discount earlier translations. Just read Proust...you'll be happy you did!
Having said this now comes the question of which translation to read. I've read the first English translation by C.K. Scott Moncrieff published by Random House in 1927. I've also read the new Penguin translation of The Guermantes Way by Mark Treharne. The Penguin translations are "easier" to read and cater more to a 21st century sensibility. To my mind the restructuring of sentences at times, unfortunately, sacrifice the poetics of Proust's language in favor of adherence to modern grammatical convention. Montcrieff also had the advantage of doing his translation closer to the time in which Proust actually lived and worked; the flavor of this early translation feels more "authentic" and contemporaneous with the period. An example: The first sentence in Montcrieff's The Germantes Way reads: "The twittering of the birds at daybreak..." Treharne's reads: "The early-morning twitter of the birds..." Does this matter? It's your call.
Read the Penguins if this gets you into Proust. But don't discount earlier translations. Just read Proust...you'll be happy you did!
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Brilliant
15 Dec 2008
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Presumably, one does not read a review of Proust to find out if the story is good. It's a bit like reading a review of the Bible in order to find out whether it says anything relevant about religion. Proust's place in literature is beyond doubt--how his translators fare, however, is open to debate. Mark Treharne has validated Penguin's decision to tackle this new translation with a brilliant, crisp, fresh, easily-accessible Proust. In fact, the text is so easily accessible that one wonders if something has been lost in translation along with Proust's famous obtuseness. But be reassured, the original's consistent ability to astonish with its insights into the human psyche is there throughout. This is Proust as he would have sounded had he written in English. Well done, Treharne.
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