Between Hell and Reason: Essays from the Resistance Newspaper Combat, 1944-1947 [Hardcover]

Albert Camus (Author), Alexandre de Gramont (Translator), Elisabeth Young-Bruehl (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1991

CONTRIBUTORS: Elizabeth Young-Bruehl.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Camus ( The Stranger ) was one of the editors of Combat , a newspaper of the French Resistance, during the last two years of WW II and after. This collection makes available in English for the first time 40 editorials he wrote for the paper and his letter of resignation. The pieces allow readers to track his political evolution at the time, groping his way from "machine guns when necessary" to "the refusal to legitimize murder," as his disillusion with post-Liberation French politics grew. Regrettably, few things age as badly as newspaper editorials. Although Camus declaims, "We need words that are more direct and true," the writing here often is bloated and pompous. De Gramont's translation reads well, and his introductory essay is succinct and informative, briefly tracing the history of the Resistance and Camus's role in it. The book does contain flashes of the moral outrage that won this Nobel laureate acclaim as a novelist and essayist, and its historical interest is undeniable, but readers looking for more will be disappointed.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Thoughtful and well organized, documented by an informative 32-page introduction as well as by notes, this book presents Camus's (1913-1960) political credo during 1944-47. At that time, he was editor of the journal Combat , initially published clandestinely by the French Resistance. Until now, only a few of the editorials have appeared in English; this book collects 41 of the most important, dealing with Camus's views on the nature of revolution, his hopes for the new society (which he thought would emerge after the war), and his gradual disillusionment with the impact the Resistance would have on French politics. The title is taken from a 1945 editorial, "On the Bombing of Hiroshima," which asks that we "choose definitely between hell and reason." For those familiar only with Camus's novels and theater, this is an excellent introduction to the political thinking that illuminates all his work.
- Danielle Mihram, Univ. of Southern California Lib., Los Angeles
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 182 pages
• Publisher: Wesleyan; Trans. from the French edition (August 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0819551880
• ISBN-13: 978-0819551887
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,550,804 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars See where Camus got his ideas for his later work., August 25, 2000

By 

Damon Navas-Howard (Santa Rosa, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Between Hell and Reason: Essays from the Resistance Newspaper Combat, 1944-1947 (Paperback)

I am sad to see no other reviews of this book on Amazon. This is a well written book full of essays written by Albert Camus for the french resistance paper Combat. Like the title suggests Albert Camus is faced 'Between Hell And Reason' with what he and the world was faced against. Much like Orwell's "Homage To Catalonia" we see the writer in his early age before his written his major works and going off into the abyss of war. We see them mold ideas which mostly are more radical and less complicated which they would use later to write "masterpieces".

The essays start with the liberation of Paris. The topics throughout the book go from self critique of the paper to responses of major figures in the war. My favorite essays were the ones that pointed out how false and fake the press were during the war. Camus however doesn't just criticize other figures and press, he self-critques his own paper Combat. Camus is very honest and isn't just filled with meaningless words. He really means what he says and doesn't say it if it's not true. Mostly when I read political essays and other works of the same nature, I mostly feel alienated and disagree but with "Between Hell And Reason" I could understand and really believe what Camus said. Very few political pieces do that to me.

This edition of "Between Hell And Reason" has a big introduction with translator's notes and footnotes for the essays. Anyone who wants to really study Albert Camus could use a lot from this edition of "Between Hell And Reason."

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good essays, but collected better elsewhere, June 2, 2009

By 

J. Edgar Mihelic "Iconoclast" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Between Hell and Reason: Essays from the Resistance Newspaper Combat, 1944-1947 (Paperback)

I liked the essays, but I liked them better in the more fleshed out "Camus at Combat," which in my opinion has better translations for the English reader.