Two Lives and a Dream [Paperback]

Marguerite Yourcenar (Author), W. Kaiser (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 20, 1989

Set in Rembrandt's Amsterdam, "An Obscure Man" is the story of Nathanaël—innocent, open to experience—born like Everyman upon the stream of life. In "A Lovely Morning," Nathanaël's young son joins a touring company of Jacobean actors. "Anna, soror . . . ," the final tale, is an account of illicit passion in the baroque world of Naples.

"An Obscure Man swarms with life. This intricately researched, imaginative, beautifully written tale of a young man's brief life in the mid-17th century is entirely engrossing."—Leona Weiss, San Francisco Chronicle

"In these three stories, [Yourcenar] succeeds in making the essences of these past lives a part of the reader's future through the sheer intensity of their portrayal."—Margaret Ezell, Houston Chronicle

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

These three tales of the Renaissance by the first woman elected to the Academie Francaise capture "the misery and sweetness of existence." "An Obscure Man" recounts the short life of Nathanael, who runs away to sea from his Amsterdam home, fearing he has killed a man. He serves years before the mast, witnesses the horrors of slavery, lives in the wilds of Canada and loves three women; one, the prostitute/thief Sarai, gives him a son. The tale evokes classic Dutch paintings; the author describes its visual inspiration in her valuable postfaces, which trace the inception and long evolution of these fictions. The graceful, slighter "A Lovely Morning" shows Nathanael's son running off with a troupe of actors, joyous at becoming "so many people living out so many adventures." The gothic tale "Anna, soror . . . " takes the reader to Spain and Italy, describing the doomed, incestuous passion of a brother and sister. The volume takes its place alongside Yourcenar's other penetrating re-creations of life in historic periods (Hadrian's Memoirs; Oriental Tales.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Here are three stylish but contrasting historical novellas from the noted author of Mishima ( LJ 11/1/86) and first woman elected to the Academie Francaise. The shortest, "A Lovely Morning," is a jeu d'esprit in which a boy joining a troupe of actors dreams of the roles he will play. "An Obscure Man" follows the boy's father from youth in 17th-century Greenwich to a solitary death on a North Sea Island. The father, Nathanael, is a splendid creation, a man whose empathy extends even to trees, "victims of the ax of the feeblest woodsman." The book closes on a somber note with "Anna, Soror . . . ," a classically severe study of incest in 16th-century Italy. Recommended for collections of serious fiction. Grove Koger, Boise P.L., Id. .,
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Corgi (January 20, 1989)
• ISBN-10: 0552992593
• ISBN-13: 978-0552992596
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,637,458 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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