Julius (Virago Modern Classics) [Paperback]

Daphne du Maurier (Author), Julie Myerson (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2004 | Series: Virago Modern Classics

A chilling story of ambition, Daphne du Maurier's third novel has lost none of its ability to unsettle and disturb. Julius Lévy has grown up in a peasant family in a village on the banks of the Seine. A quick-witted urchin caught up in the Franco-Prussian War, he is soon forced by tragedy to escape to Algeria. Once there, he learns the ease of swindling, the rewards of love affairs, and the value of secrecy. Before he’s 20, he’s in London, where his empire-building begins in earnest. Driven by a lifelong hunger for power, he becomes a rich and ruthless man. His one weakness is his daughter Gabriel.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Dame Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989) wrote more than twenty-five acclaimed novels, short stories, and plays, including Rebecca, My Cousin Rachel, Jamaica Inn, and The House on the Strand. She was also a passionate and skillful chronicler of her own remarkable, famously artistic family. Now, this is one of three of her fine novels that have been reissued in the distinguished Virago Modern Classics series.

About the Author

Daphne du Maurier was born in 1906 and educated at home and in Paris. She began writing in 1928, and many of her bestselling novels were set in Cornwall, where she lived for most of her life. She was made a DBE in 1969 and died in 1989.

Product Details

• Paperback: 324 pages
• Publisher: Virago UK (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1844080684
• ISBN-13: 978-1844080687
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #769,780 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Daphne du Maurier was born in 1906 and educated at home and in Paris. She began writing in 1928, and many of her bestselling novels were set in Cornwall, where she lived for most of her life. She was made a DBE in 1969 and died in 1989.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Julius Levy: the man without a soul (4 1/2 stars)..., May 14, 2009

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CoffeeGurl - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Julius (Virago Modern Classics) (Paperback)

"His first instinct was to stretch his hands to the sky. The white clouds seemed so near to him, surely they were easy to hold and to caress, strange-moving things belonging to the blue space of heaven."

Sky is the limit for Julius Lévy. He is a half-Jew born in France. His grandfather is a vegetable merchant, a fine salesman who teaches Julius the value of getting "something for nothing," creating the illusion that he is offering the better bargain. His father, Paul Lévy, is gutless and uninspired, caring for nothing other than his flute. After Julius's grandfather dies when the Prussians invade Puteaux, and further tragedy befalls his parents, he turns tricks to make a quick buck in Algeria. For a while, Julius had dreamed of becoming a rabbi, but felt that spirituality was not for him. Instead, he moves to London and, through hard work and ruthless ambition, becomes one of the richest men in England. One café establishment becomes several, and he continues to fatten his purse with speculation and other schemes. He has everything -- a wife, a child, respectable society -- indeed, sky's the only limit for Julius. But nothing is ever enough. One obsession replaces another, and soon his teenage daughter becomes his new object of fascination. Still, he must have all or nothing. Is the sky indeed the limit for this man?

Ick! Reading this book is like reading the devil's biography. *shudders* Julius Lévy is one of the most disturbing characters ever created. He is so devious that he seems soulless at times. I won't supply plot details, for it would ruin things for the reader, but this is a transcendental story, covering Julius's life from his birth to his death. It covers the time frames of 1860 all the way to the 1930s, covering various historical occurrences and technological breakthroughs in the process. As for content, you will get symbolism, foreshadows and sinister language. First published as The Progress of Julius in 1933, this is Daphne du Maurier's third effort. Her writing is a little on the green side, definitely not as well structured as her later work, but it still far exceeds the works of many veteran authors of today. This novel will unsettle and disturb you while keeping you turning the pages. I paid a pittance for this book, and in turn I got, in the words of Julius, "something for nothing." A fine piece of literature and I cannot recommend it enough.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Something for nothing - something for nothing...", May 25, 2009

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Misfit (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Julius (Virago Modern Classics) (Paperback)

...is the mantra that governs the life of Julius Lévy. The story begins in 1860 in France as a young half-Jewish Julius learns the ways of selling in the local market place - always getting more than you give away - "something for nothing." As the Prussians invade France the Lévys head for the relative safety of Paris, although unforeseen events send Julius and his father heading for the relative safety of Algiers. Now orphaned Julius learns to steal, manipulate and swindle his way until he saves enough to strike out for England and the empire he feels destined to build - no matter what the cost to others around him - including his morbid obsession with his daughter.

That's about all I'm going to tell, anymore and I'd be spoiling the story. Suffice it to say that Julius is a wholly despicable, unlikable character void of any knowledge of right or wrong . If he can't have it then no one else can - whether it be the pet cat he drowned as a child rather than let someone else care for it.

While this third book of Du Maurier's is still far from the excellence of her later books, it is a fascinating and disturbing read and quite amazing when you realize that she wrote this when she was all of twenty-six years old. Just be warned, Julius has no redeeming qualities whatsoever, so if you're a reader who wants it all tied up with a pink ribbon and an HEA at the end, this probably isn't the book for you. However, if you want a look at something besides the "romantic suspense" of Du Maurier's later works I'd look this one up. 4/5 stars and highly recommended.

4 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Rise and fall of an ambitious man, March 8, 2005

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HORAK (Zug, Switzerland) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Julius (Virago Modern Classics) (Paperback)

In her novel, Mrs du Maurier portrays the rise of Julius Lévy from a peasant boy brought up near Paris in the 1870s to a successful businessman in England in the 1920s. The plot lacks ambition and is slightly naive at times. Mrs du Maurier's ignorance of the French language is obvious in many instances - for example naming Julius's daughter "Gabriel" - and her attempts at depicting the matters of the spirit a failure, as the following quotation reveals: "Elsa, coughing her life away in the little bedroom next to him, was happy in the ignorance of death like a child who believes in God." But if the reader would like to be reminded that ambition is one of the most awful human trait of character, he may find some interest in this novel.