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Madame Bovary

By Gustave Flaubert
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert is a classic tale of Emma Bovary, a woman living in provincial France who yearns for a more glamorous and exciting life than her reality offers. Her attempts to escape the monotony and limitations lead her into a series of romantic and financial entanglements. The novel explores themes of desire, disillusionment, and the pursuit of unattainable dreams.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you are intrigued by intricate character studies and vivid depictions of 19th-century provincial life. You might enjoy exploring themes of romantic idealism, the constraints of society, and the consequences of pursuing unattainable dreams. Its rich, detailed narrative style offers a critical yet empathetic portrayal of human desires and disappointments.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Emma Bovary is beautiful and bored, trapped in her marriage to a mediocre doctor and stifled by the banality of provincial life. She longs for passion and seeks escape in fantasies of high romance, in voracious spending and, eventually, in adultery. But even her affairs bring her disappointment and the consequences are devastating.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Madame Bovary tells the story of Emma Bovary, a beautiful and bored woman trapped in her marriage to a mediocre doctor and stifled by the banality of provincial life. An ardent reader of sentimental novels, she longs for passion and seeks escape in fantasies of high romance, voracious spending, and eventually, in adultery.

However, even her affairs bring her disappointment, and the consequences are devastating. Flaubert's erotically charged and psychologically acute portrayal of Emma Bovary caused a moral outcry upon its publication in 1857. It was so lifelike that many women claimed they were the model for his heroine; but Flaubert insisted: Madame Bovary, c'est moi.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Madame Bovary is often praised for its intricate and elegant prose, capturing the beauty of its era while delivering a potent critique of 19th-century bourgeois society. Reviewers appreciate its detailed characterisation and the ironical depiction of Emma Bovary's tragic pursuit of romantic fulfilment. The novel is likened to an architectural marvel of its time, combining grace with strength.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780140449129

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 January 2003

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Classics

Contributors:

  • Translated by Geoffrey Wall

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 23.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 280g

Pages: 384

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Best Sellers at Book Hero Classic Fiction Classic General Fiction Fiction General Fiction Gustave Flaubert In Stock Books In-Stock Fiction Books Literary Fiction New Release Fiction Penguin Black Classics Penguin Books Penguin Classics Penguin Classics: General Fiction

About the Author

Gustave Flaubert was born in Rouen in 1821. After illness interrupted a career in law, he retired to live with his widowed mother and devote himself to writing. He achieved limited success in his own lifetime, but his fame and reputation grew steadily after his death in 1880. Geoffrey Wall teaches French at the University of York. His biography of Flaubert has been translated into four languages. Mich le Roberts is the half-English half-French writer of ten highly praised novels.

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