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The Chartreuse of Parma

by Stendhal

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Pages: 482

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About this book

Young, impulsive, and half in love with Napoleon's glory, the Italian nobleman Fabrice del Dongo runs off to fight at Waterloo, then returns to a small Italian court where intrigue and passion prove far more dangerous than any battlefield. Guided and adored by his brilliant aunt the Duchess Sanseverina, Fabrice stumbles through love affairs, a killing, prison, and escape, until his heart settles where he least expects it. Written in an astonishing seven weeks, the novel dazzled later readers from Balzac to Tolstoy with its speed, wit, and psychological depth. It stands with The Red and the Black as Stendhal's finest achievement.

About the author

Stendhal

Stendhal, born Henri Marie Beyle in Grenoble in 1783, turned experience of Napoleonic Europe and a lasting attachment to Italy into sharply observed fiction. He followed military campaigns as a government official, later served as French consul at Civitavecchia, and defended Romantic literature in essays as well as novels.