NERVAL, Gérard de.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

Sylvie: Souvenirs du Valois. Limited deluxe edition, a finely bound copy, number 118 of 150 copies printed "sur grand papier du Japon impérial" and extensively illustrated with engravings by Edmond Rudaux. First published in the author's collection Les Filles du feu (The Daughters of Fire), the semi-autobiographical Sylvie is one of de Nerval's finest works. De Nerval's narrator combines reminiscence, reverie, and his current reality to describe the periods of his life and the romantic relationships - always ultimately unrequited or unattainable - that characterised them. Alongside the vivid descriptions of the natural world typical of French Romanticism, this unstructured chronology creates a dreamlike, almost mythical effect. For its innovative style and lyricism, Sylvie has been acclaimed by such luminaries as Marcel Proust, Umberto Eco, and Julien Gracq.

Found via Rare Books Intel, a search across rare-book dealers, auction houses and marketplaces worldwide.