Germinal [Kindle Edition]

Emile Zola (Author)

Book Description

Germinal (1885) by Émile Zola's twenty-volume series Les Rougon-Macquart. Widely considered Zola's undisputed masterpiece and one of the greatest novels ever written in the French language, the novel - an uncompromisingly harsh and realistic story of a coalminers' strike in northern France in the 1860s - has been published and translated in over one hundred countries as well as inspiring five film adaptations and two TV productions.

The title refers to the name of a month of the French Republican Calendar, a spring month. Germen is a Latin word which means "seed"; the novel describes the hope for a better future that seeds amongst the miners.

Editorial Reviews

Review

''Few readers of audiobooks can match Frederick Davidson's remarkable skill....He's equal to the task [of] rendering this complex, yet worthwhile, novel accessible to all listeners.'' --AudioFile

About the Author

EMILE ZOLA (1840-1902), French writer and critic, was raised in a poor family at Aix-en-Provence and at age eighteen went to Paris where he worked as a clerk and a journalist before turning to writing novels. For many years he used his fiction in the service of his passion for social reform. He published many masterworks, but is perhaps most famous for his a series of novels called Les Rougon-Macquart, one of the chief monuments of the French naturalist movement.

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Product Details

• File Size: 693 KB
• Print Length: 597 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: LeClue (August 23, 2008)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B001EQ5V4O
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #60,544 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #25 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > History > Europe > France
  • #87 in Books > History > Europe > France

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly beautiful, engaging February 24, 2011

By E.J. Kaye

Format:Kindle Edition

Blew me away. Engaging tale of a mining strike in France during the 1860's. It carries a heavy socialist message, but the characters are vivid and the writing evokes the difficult lives of miners above and below ground. Sort of like 'The Jungle' in that it exposes the abuse of the working class.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gritty novel December 6, 2012

By George W. Kinney

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Germinal" is one of the most engrossing novels I have ever read. Zola takes the reader to the coal district in France, where one is able to see the dehumanizing effects of unfettered capitalism. All the aspects of daily life for the miners are controlled through the mining company. The hovels in which the miners live are owned by the mining company. Coal for the warmth in the houses is through the company. Children work in the mines as soon as they are able. The meager sustenance of the family is through the combined earnings of all the family members. Into this situation steps a young firebrand who dreams of altering this existence. It is through him that the miners see hope of a better future. This is truly an indictment of a system of unfettered capitalism. I would advise anyone who wishes to get a glimpse of the early industrial revolution to read this ebook.
It is a very gritty picture of life before unionism, where the power is all in the hands of the owners.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gernimal e book May 10, 2012

By Carl Chesley

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Very good read. Took me a bit to get into it, but if you want to see what life was like prior to unions, and in the mining industry this is a good look. The book is not pro-union anti-capital, after all you need both, but it does show what having one with out the other can be like. Would recommend it to others.