Customer Reviews

Lord Jim & Nostromo (Modern Library)

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

 

 

This is a truly excellent edition (and compilation). It may seem like a small point, but I really love the typeset used. And the prefatory material, especially that of Robert Kaplan, is particularly good. The selection of Lord Jim and Nostromo was also well done, for it juxtaposes two of Conrad's best and, perhaps, most representative works. On the one hand, there's Lord Jim, largely psychological and personal, in which the title character struggles with, and constantly returns to, a trying moment in which he acted questionably. On the other, while no less psychological, there's Nostromo, which enters the realm of politics, revolution, and ideology--a more mature Conrad and certainly much more complex, stylistically and thematically. The works themselves, of course, deserve five stars, but so, too, does this stunning Modern Library edition.

I recommend this publication because the stories are very good (although I had to keep a notepad beside me with Nostromo to keep track of the characters) and the quality of the printing and binding is top-notch. With re-printed books the paper/printing is too often rubbish (beware esp. Simon & Schuster), but this is a nice job.

This is an excellent selection, Conrad's best novel, NOSTROMO, and his most popular, LORD JIM, which is also an excellent novel it its own right.

Price is the big sticking point, since you can get both novels and lots more by Conrad for about an eighth the price. Modern Library does a fine job on this ebook, as on most of its others, and the introduction is very good. If you want an unusually readable and well proofread Kindle download go for this.