Customer Reviews

The Complete Works of Guy de Maupassant (New Edition)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The title of this book is very misleading; it is not "the complete works". Rather, this is a reprint of a 1917 selection of 29 of the author's short stories.

This book is possibly the worst purchase I have made on Amazon. First off, it is erronously advertised: it is nowhere in the ballpark of being the complete works of Maupassant; it is a 220 page text (extra large print) of some of Maupassant's more mediocre short stories, like "Ugly" or "An Artist's Wife." Secondly, the translation is poor: 'Victorianized' for turn-of-the-century bourgeoisie, it reads nothing like Maupassant, and the power of his naturalist prose is all but obliterated.

My advice: stick to the French, or find a newer edition/ translation.

I have no qualms against the Guy de Maupassant or his stories. In fact, he is one of my favorite writers. The reason I gave this only two stars is because of how misleading the title is. When I see the word complete, I expect it to mean that all of his stories are included. There are only 29 stories in this book. Two of my favorites aren't even included--The Necklace, Bellflower. If you want a book that includes all of his stories, as I did, I suggest you look elsewhere.

As other reviewers noted before I bought the book. This is clearly not his complete works. Instead, this book is a bad photocopy of the original apparently. It was not type-set printing as is evidenced by only partial letters at end of full sentences. But, if you want to enjoy the author's writings, then it is a good start

A wonderful master of the short story. Please ignore the other review. This review should be about the author, not about Amazon!

See NPR's recent book review about Maupassant, and his wonderful mastery of language and the short story.