Charterhouse of Parma, The by Stendhal (1783 - 1842)

In an astounding act of literary improvisation, Stendhal dictated this complex and innovative novel, combining political and psychological realism with wit, irony and romance, in only 54 days. The result, which Henry James regarded as one of the dozen best novels of all time, feels in many ways like grand opera, an art form to which Stendhal himself was greatly attracted. The tale is set in northern Italy in the early decades of the nineteenth century. The plot revolves around Fabrizio del Dongo, an idealistic young nobleman, his aunt Gina Sanseverina (who loves Fabrizio more than perhaps she ought) and a large cast of other figures (many of them associated with the court at Parma) who have their own designs, romantic and otherwise, upon Fabrizio and his dazzling aunt. Readers who wish to avoid the spoilers in Balzac's delightful but detailed introduction to this edition should begin at section 5. (Summary by Peter Dann)