[Pocket Edition] World Literature Masterpieces Library - High-Town

Author: (French) Balzac, H. (Author), Lin Yiming (Translator)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: Madame Vauquer, born into the Confranche family, is an elderly woman who has been living in Paris for forty years, running a cheap boarding house. The boarding house is located on the Rue Sainte-Geneviève, between the Latin Quarter and the suburbs of Saint-Mars, named the Vauquer's Pension. It takes in guests of all ages and genders, yet has never been slandered or its reputation tarnished due to moral issues. However, for the past thirty years, no young man has stayed there, as only those with meager allowances from home would choose to live there. Yet, in 1819, when the tragedy begins, a poor young girl is residing in the boarding house.
Recent literature has favored depicting suffering, and the term "tragedy" has been overused and exaggerated to the point of disbelief. However, it is necessary here—not in the literal sense of the word, as this is not a truly tragic story. Yet, after reading this work, perhaps the people inside and outside the boarding house may shed a few tears. As for whether anyone outside Paris can understand this work, that is highly questionable. The book is filled with on-the-ground observations and local color, a unique charm that can only be appreciated by those who have lived on Montmartre Heights and the Red Hill.
This famous basin is characterized by dilapidated houses, crumbling plaster, intersecting ditches filled with murky, foul-smelling water. The residents have endured hardships, and when good fortune occasionally comes their way, it is often short-lived. Everyone is restless, and it is questionable what major events would be needed to cause even a momentary stir. But here and there...