George Sand Books

This is a biography of a woman writer who's real name was Aurore Dupin, who lived in Paris in the 19th century -- Since Amazon didn't provide an editorial review, here's the description from the back of the book to help you decide if this book is for you: "Hailed in her lifetime as the first female genius of any country or age -- even while condemned as the pipe-smoking, pants-wearing mistress of Frederic Chopin, Alfred de Musset, and numerous others -- George Sand, born Aurore Dupin, both captivated and scandalized nineteenth-century Paris. Foreshadowing the women's movement by more than a century, she shook the foundations of European literature and culture with her consuming desire to discover her identity through her art. A provacative, daring and truly gifted writer, George Sand emerges as large as life in this splendidly realized, lusty biography -- an insightful narrative as romantic, as intense, as meomentous as the life that inspired it."

If you loved Consuelo, you'll love this even more. It's a bit more romantic and adventurous than the first book, with none of the gloominess but a typical romance novel happy end. In this book Consuelo gets to experience life and love to the fullest. One of the best romantic thrillers of all time.

When I was a young boy, this book was my most favorite. I read it again and again with a touching feeling. This main theme is a characteristic love of little Fadette. The story turns over at certain pivotal plot, which is composed of the conversation between her and her boyfriend at the quiet riverside in the woods. Her speaking is excellent despite of her surface. Her kind conclusion causes the deep sympathy resembling the love. Rather, the theme of her speaking might be the love itself.

Later, I have begun to think of this motif as the essence of the Christianity. A lady in the Old Testament tells that she cannot estimate the figure of her lover as other girls do, because she doesn't love him for its sake, but love his invisible things like his heart.

I have learned the spiritual love from this novel. I'd advise the young people to read it.

It is a crime that most of George Sand's novels are out of print. Why are all of the boring male authors still not only in print but taught in literature courses, while Sand, the most celebrated author of her day, is impossible to find?!

Lelia was Sand's third novel, and her most controversial when published. It is quite difficult to read -- more like a series of prose poems than a novel, really. But it is certainly worth the effort. Not only is Sand a true artist and poet, but she is a sharp proto-feminist critic; in fact, many of her critiques of marriage and the treatment of women are still completely relevent today.

Lelia tells the story of a woman of towering intellect who is unable to feel physical passion (she refers to herself as "impotent"). She feels great passion for art, poetry, and Nature, but she is unable to consummate her relationship with the young poet Stenio. Much of the novel consists of the letter written between Lelia and Stenio, so we see Lelia both through the lens of the male gaze (the men constantly dichotomize her into angel/demon, mother/whore) and through her own eyes. The center of the novel deals with Lelia's relationship to her sister, the courtesan Pulcherie (based on Sand's romantic relationship with the actress Marie Dorval). At the heart of the novel is a description of Pulcherie looking upon the sleeping Lelia as a young girl and learning for the first time the power of love and life. It is, in my opinion, one of Sand's finest passages and absolutely not to be missed by anyone interested in Sand, women's European literature, or lesbian literature.

Lelia is an emotially turbulant novel; nowhere do we find the harmonious, transcendant union between man and woman that characterizes much of Sand's other work. Lelia stands out as a Sandian oddity because of the time in Sand's life in which it was written. Although it's difficult to find a copy, I highly recommend getting it any way you can. It is the job of feminist readers and critics to get Sand back into the canon.

This novel although certainly different nevertheless it is exciting in its own peculiar way, very dramatic, intensely poetic, soft, charming and inviting; and yet by all means the heroine is despairing, terribly gloomy sort of character, suicidal and dark, but mostly she is out of this world, alike a visionary. The book is gentle, romantic in tragic sense of the word, Leilia is kind-hearted and yet doomed, reader grasps by own choice certainly. It is a finely written book, belonging perfectly to its Romantic 19th century era. It is dark, tragic, sentimental. But simply breath-taking. Can't be put down easily. Quite haunting.

Andre Maurois has great esteem for George Sand (the "nomme de plume" of Aurore Dupin de Dudevant), which he eloquently manifests in his biography of the great literary heroine of 19th Century France. I have been an avid fanatic of Madame Sand for quite a while, having read many of her novels (she was incredibly prolific, and so it must take many more years than the 25 which I have thus lived to read her entire oeuvre), as well as several biographies written about her. I read her "Histoire de Ma Vie" ("Story of My Life") a couple of years ago, for an Independent Study I was conducting during my years as an undergraduate, and I was absolutely fascinated by her life and her spirit, which she manifested in her novels. She led a life which many of her contemporaries considered "depraved," yet she always lived fearlessly and emotionally, according to her own inclinations and heart ("Never fear when your heart tells you what to do. . . the heart can never be wrong," she once wrote). I picked up Maurois' biography on George Sand recently, and I devoured it in a matter of days. His approach and style is somewhat antiquated (he wrote this book in the 50's, after all), but he nevertheless seems to have an uncanny understanding of Sand's life and ideas. I highly recommend his biography to anyone who is not too acquainted with Sand or her writings, but for the true Sand afficionado, I suggest that he or she read her autobiography before Maurois' biography. After all, who is most entitled and prepared to speak about her own life than Sand herself? Nevertheless, Maurois has written a good and thorough account of Sand's life. It is not one of those most commendable biographies, in which the reader believes that the writer must have known his or her subject personally, but it is a solid account of Sand's life, regardless. Although Maurois holds George Sand in high regard, he is not biased in his opinions regarding the authoress. . . in fact, at times he almost seems to pass judgement regarding her chaotic lifestyle and her tumultous liaisons. For example, he portrays De Musset as more of a victim of Sand's indiscretions (her affair with the doctor who sought to cure De Musset of his infirmities, for example), than his own penchant for a life of debauchery. I would not go so far as to proclaim that Maurois is sexist, but he does seem, at times, to allow more liberties to the men in Sand's life than he does to Sand herself. He sometimes depicts Sand as a sort of vampiress, who devours her male counterparts, while seemingly disregarding their own vices. Sand had a few jilted lovers, yes, but she too was wounded in several romantic liaisons. Nevertheless, and in summary, Maurois renders a pretty accurate portrait of George Sand, which will surely inspire the reader to learn more about this fascinating and mysterious author, truly so far ahead of her time. . . George Sand lived the sort of life, both as a woman and as an artist, which was not generally not embraced during her lifetime. She paved a literary path for future female writers, such as Colette, Virginia Woolf, and Jane Austen, among countless others, who have carried on her legacy. . . Maurois acknowledges such, if we read between the lines. . . Well, it was not his intent to present his readers with a literary feminist treatise, but he wrote a really good biography about a woman who would influence future female authors to follow her example. . .

My children (and their teachers, too!) love the THIRD GRADE DETECTIVES series. Readers learn a lot about how police use science to solve crimes. This series turned one of my children around in science class. Until he started reading the Third Grade Detectives (so far, there are five titles in the series), he was doing poorly in his science studies. Now, he can hardly wait to study science!

If you would like to go along on a journey of the heart with one man as he tests many facets of life's experiences, THIS ONE'S FOR YOU! From a boy growing up in the Midwest and learning peace and contentment on the Loup River you travel with him to California and go surf fishing, on to Wyoming where he relishes the grandeur in God's handywork and finds a lifelong pleasure in trout fishing then moves on to his quest to find the perfect vacation getaway . Finally he arrives in Oregon and revels in river fishing and river rafting on the wild rivers of Oregon. This is a book that anyone of us who has longings that we can't even explain ourselves will love as this life traveler tests, tries and learns his way along many paths. A truly woderful book that is well worth reading.

Now, as any deposed true queen would do, it lives happily in exile knowing that it was pushed aside by such books as The Count of Montecristo, Don Quijote, On the Beach and so on, but, trust me, even thou in exile, this books lives in a palace, with all the servants and courtesans it deserves.

This is the second Sand novel that I have read. Sadly it didn't measure up to the first, 'Indiana', for me. It is too long and the mannered society of the characters is too formal and stilted for me. And there is so much scene setting - it goes on and on and on. In fact I put the novel down for quite a while before I picked it up and read to the finish. And the ending does have more momentum than a lot that went before, but - perhaps a reflection of the time - I am perplexed at how an individual can be charged with murder when no-one has died and, indeed, even be sentenced to execution and, in the end, an execution does take place - still in the absence of a death.

But Bernard - brought up badly by the bad side of the family - is rescued and nurtured by the good side where he falls in love with his second cousin Edmee. And for seven years Edmee resists him - for two of those years he actually flees to America (and yes, I couldn't blame him). Of course, had he been raised in a supportive and caring environment perhaps he could have withstood Edmee's 'indifference' (initially she is betrothed to another, but she is released from that), but with the terrible upbringing he endured Bernard is torn apart by this apparent rejection in the heart of the part of the family that has adopted him.

So why does Edmee keep Bernard at arms length? It is not at all clear to me unless - as is indicated at times - she sees Bernard as mentally unstable (perhaps schizophrenic) and cannot take on the burden of caring for him, physically or in her heart. But she does not send him away either! There is one other possibility that Sand does not explore and that is that Edmee has an unseen physical disability that distracts and torments her in the face Bernard's love. But this is just making excuses for inexplicable behaviour.

Strangely for me, the sanest words in the novel come from the 'murderer' who comes upon Bernard and Edmee 'lost' in the woods. He says that the conversation he overheard nearly made him scream with laughter - Bernard with his childish pleas, Edmee with her haughty indifference. And that is exactly how I saw these two and in the end I really didn't need to spend as much time with them as George Sand has put me through.

It is an interesting novel but for me tedious in its extent and at times laboured in its prose. With unlikeable key characters, I find it hard to recommend.

Mauprat is a novel about uncultured Bernard who rescues the beautiful Edmee de Mauprat. Bernard falls in love with Edmee, and Edmee's father thinks of Bernard as his son. He wants Bernard and Edmee to be together, but because Edmee feels superior to Bernard, she cannot allow herself to love him. She tries to educate Bernard and teach him manners. Once that is done, Edmee begins to love Bernard. This book has a very interesting theme of a women's superiority to a man. I highly recommend it! It was one of my favorite George Sand novels, and it is interesting because it is told my the perspective of eldery Bernard looking back on his life. Read this book!

Previously my favorite short story or novella was Tolstoy's Master and Man. But this present work comes close to that. I found it on a list of great literature that Bloom has created. It is from Bloom's Democratic Period, 1832-1900. Among the French writers, Bloom selects this work as the best from George Sand.

It is a three part story about a ploughman, Germain. He is a French farmer and he owns his own farm, so he is a man of substance. He is a good looking man in excellent health with three small children, but his wife has died. The story revolves around a trip that he makes to meet a new wife. A trip was arranged by his now deceased wife's inlaws, who are worried about Germain and the children, and then the subsequent marriage that follows on later. Sand manages to communicate a lot of the charm of rural French life to the reader while she tells the story.

There are many twists and turns. The tale seems quite improbable at first, but then it becomes much more compelling as one reads on - more than might possibly imagine. It is a book that kept me up late until it was done. It is not a complicated story and there are few dramatic moments. Rather it is a simple but interesting story about a trip and a romance in rural France. The start and finishing parts are good, but it is a bit slow in the middle with the dialogue bewteem the hemp-beater and the grave-digger.

This is a great novella that I highly recommend.

As a side note it is available free on the Gutenberg Project website.

George Sand (1804-1876) was an excellent writer, and this book allows the reader to be certain of that. How? Well, in this book Sand takes a seemingly uninteresting subject and tells us a beautiful story about him.

"The devil's pool" (1846) is short, and it is likely to seem even shorter due to the fact that you will be caught up in the pastoral world that the author describes so well. The plot is simple, but effective, and revolves around a planned marriage, and love. However, I am certain you will also enjoy her beautiful metaphors, that for example make you wish you were able to watch a particular sunset.

All in all, I think that the lesson here is that there is poetry and beauty in everything, we just need to be capable of seeing it, as Sand did. Recommended!

Belen Alcat

..... if I couldn't fight off my sad thoughts? (p 48)
I had a vague knowledge of George Sand before I read Belinda Jack's biography of her. In learning more about Sand I grew to admire the determined individual that she was. But I never really felt any liking for her - unlike, say, what I feel for Emma Goldman or Mary Shelley. Sand's novel 'Indiana' did excite me despite some of its melodramatic aspects. 'Mauprat' on the other hand, wasn't to my liking much at all. 'The Devil's Pool', however, is such a short novel - a novella really - that I was willing to give it a try. And I am so glad I did.

This is a simple pastoral novel, but Victoria Glendinning's Foreword mislead me. I thought I was about to enter the rural world of W H Hudson ('A Shepherd's Life' or 'Idle Days in Patagonia'), which was not a bad prospect for me as I enjoy Hudson's writing a lot. But Sand is different altogether - this rural environment is gripping and tinged with horror and despair.

Here's another quote:
'..... everyone has a story (and everyone would be able to rouse interest in the novel of their own life, if they had really understood it.....)(p 15)

Other recommended reading:
'George Sand': Belinda Jack
'Indiana': George Sand
'Living my Life': Emma Goldman (she must have really understood it!)
'A Crystal Age': W H Hudson (for a different type of pastoral world, but just as challenging)