{"product_id":"cousin-bette-hardcover","title":"Cousin Bette - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eHonoré de Balzac\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eMint Editions\u003c\/b\u003e (Contribution by)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eCousin Bette\u003c\/i\u003e (1846) is a novel by French author Honoré de Balzac. Part of Balzac's \u003ci\u003eLa Comédie humaine\u003c\/i\u003e sequence, the novel is recognized as being the author's last fully-realized work, and features several characters who appear elsewhere throughout his legendary series. It has inspired several film and television adaptations, as well as earned comparisons to Shakespeare's \u003ci\u003eOthello\u003c\/i\u003e and Tolstoy's \u003ci\u003eWar and Peace\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe novel focuses on the life and exploits of Bette Fischer, a 42-year-old woman whose bitterness at remaining unmarried-despite several proposals by men she deemed unworthy-drives her to ruin the reputations and lives of her extended family. After rescuing the young sculptor Wenceslas Steinbock from suicide, Bette develops a complex affection for the man. When he falls in love with Hortense, the daughter of Bette's cousin Adeline, she hatches a plan to gain revenge for this perceived personal slight. She recruits the young and beautiful Valérie Marneffe-an unhappily married woman-to seduce Adeline's husband, Baron Hector Hulot, whose uncontrolled desires and extensive vanity both test his family's loyalty and stretch their finances to the furthest possible limit. \u003ci\u003eCousin Bette\u003c\/i\u003e is an intense psychological drama and character study that burns with the fire of Balzac's critique of French society. While exposing the depths of human immorality-particularly where money is made the center of personal relationships-Balzac manages to remind us that what makes us human is not what drives us apart, but the lengths to which we will go to cultivate love despite our basest impulses.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo read \u003ci\u003eCousin Bette\u003c\/i\u003e is to observe the hopes, flaws, and desires of the people of nineteenth century France, but to ultimately judge ourselves. This final masterpiece of Honoré de Balzac is a testament to the skill and dedication of one of history's finest literary minds.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWith a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Honoré de Balzac's \u003ci\u003eCousin Bette\u003c\/i\u003e is a classic of French literature reimagined for modern readers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBette Fischer, a bitter and contemptuous woman, seeks to embroil her extended family in a series of romantic scandals. With the help of Valérie Marneffe, a beautiful and willing accomplice, she plays on the weaknesses and desires of her victims in order not only to expose their vanity and egotism, but to excuse her own. \u003ci\u003eCousin Bette\u003c\/i\u003e, arguably the final great work by master novelist Honoré de Balzac, is an intensely emotional work of fiction that exposes with its realist lens the often brutal nature of human relationships.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 370\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.94 x 8 x 5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e December 01, 2020\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51760938418464,"sku":"9781513218960","price":26.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/60e0cb36ff547ad30e5e324ff261cf7c.webp?v=1780194690","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/cousin-bette-hardcover","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}