Notebooks 1935-1951 (Paperback)

by Albert Camus (Author), Philip Malcolm Waller Thody (Author), Justin O'Brien (Author) "What I mean is this: that one can, with no romanticism, feel nostalgic for lost poverty..." (more)
Key Phrases: house before the world, The Myth of Sisyphus, The Stranger, Don Juan (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

Product Details

• Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Marlowe & Company (September 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569246661
• ISBN-13: 978-1569246665
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #298,167 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Albert Camus, writer., July 12, 2004

By	Rocco Dormarunno (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

For too many decades and by too many college instructors, Albert Camus has been clumped together with Jean-Paul Sartre and others under the heading of "Existentialist". This collection of Camus' notebooks indicates that there were many other things going on in his thinking, and Existentialism was hardly one of them. In fact, several revealing excerpts show us a man who disagreed with it fundamentally.

That aside, what it really presents to the reader is that Camus is first and foremost a writer. Whether it's creative writing, critical writing, reflective writing, etc., he was accomplished at all of them. His description of a sunset, quaint as it might sound, is so beautiful it's almost heartbreaking. Meanwhile, his political observations are keen, with a strong sense of urgency.

Equally fascinating is to observe his literary works taking shape: to see the mind of a writer putting a major opus together. To me, this is the major contribution of the book. I highly recommend this book to aspiring writers, diarists, or to anyone interested in the mid-20th century thought. That goes for Existentialists too.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An existentialist in the process, September 28, 2004

By	Paola Chacon "PC" (Miami Beach) - See all my reviews

After reading all of Camus' works I read his notebooks, and all of it sudden his track of mind made sense. You can clearly see the train of thoughts before The Stranger and The Fall. This book is essential for anyone who is into existentialism, absurdism and their derivatives.

I would like to say this is more of a philosophical book, but Albert's desire was always to be recognized as a writer more than a thinker. His entries are of an artist expressing his lassitude towards meaning and some paragraphs are harsh while criticizing war, love and human nature. If you are overly religious, this book may not be for you.

Great collection of entries from writer who should've won more Nobel Prizes and who is the father of modern existentialism.. still.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A double value , January 30, 2005

By	Shalom Freedman "Shalom Freedman" (Jerusalem,Israel) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

The notebooks are valuable as the record of a life, and also as a kind of preliminary sketchbook to the works. Here one can see Camus groping toward the chrystallization of his most significant works. The aphoristic and descriptive beauty of some of the passages also add to the value of the work.