Swann's Way

Paperback / softback. New. <p><i>Swann’s Way</i> (1913) is the first volume of Marcel Proust’s seven-part novel <i>In Search of Lost Time.</i> Written while Proust was virtually confined to his bedroom from a lifelong respiratory illness, <i>Swann’s Way</i> is a story of memory, history, family, and romance from a master of Modernist literature. Praised by Virginia Woolf, Vladimir Nabokov, Michael Chabon, and Graham Greene, <i>In Search of Lost Time</i> explores the nature of memory and time while illuminating the history of homosexuality in nineteenth century Europe. For a long time I used to go to bed early.” Alone in his bedroom, the narrator meditates on sleep, dreams, and the passing of time. Spurred into memory by the taste of a madeleine dipped in a cup of lime blossom tea, he recalls his childhood in Combray, a rural village on the outskirts of Paris. Slowly, faces and names from the past come back to him—he recalls a neighbor named Swann, whose promising marriage proved disastrous; his Jewish friend Bloch, who introduced him to literature; and the walks he would take with his parents through the beautiful countryside. As he grows and learns, he begins to recognize the reality concealed by convention: the secret liaisons between lovers; the petty competitions of artists; the fleeting nature of affection and lust alike. Written in flowing prose, <i>Swann’s Way</i> is a masterpiece of twentieth century fiction that continues to entertain and astound over a century after it appeared in print. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Marcel Proust’s <i>Swann’s Way</i> is a classic work of French literature reimagined for modern readers.</p>