Germinal

Germinal
by Emile Zola, Trans. By Havelock Ellis

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About Book

From AudioFile
This sometimes depressing novel about late-nineteenth-century labor problems in France focuses on the coal mineÐa life of dangerous work, starvation wages, impoverished futures. A newcomer to the labor force attempts improvement through worker resistance, including a strike with unforseen and tragic consequences. Few readers of audiobooks can match Frederick Davidson's remarkable skill, and he needs all of it to cope with French pronunciations and divergent conversations, which require him to distinguish among many characters. Happily, he's equal to the task, rendering this complex, yet worthwhile, novel accessible to all listeners. T.H. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Book Description
The thirteenth novel in Émile Zola’s great Rougon-Macquart sequence, Germinal expresses outrage at the exploitation of the many by the few, but also shows humanity’s capacity for compassion and hope.

Etienne Lantier, an unemployed railway worker, is a clever but uneducated young man with a dangerous temper. Forced to take a back-breaking job at Le Voreux mine when he cannot get other work, he discovers that his fellow miners are ill, hungry, and in debt, unable to feed and clothe their families. When conditions in the mining community deteriorate even further, Lantier finds himself leading a strike that could mean starvation or salvation for all.

Language Notes
Text: French

From the Publisher
Founded in 1906 by J.M. Dent, the Everyman Library has always tried to make the best books ever written available to the greatest number of people at the lowest possible price. Unique editorial features that help Everyman Paperback Classics stand out from the crowd include: a leading scholar or literary critic's introduction to the text, a biography of the author, a chronology of her or his life and times, a historical selection of criticism, and a concise plot summary. All books published since 1993 have also been completely restyled: all type has been reset, to offer a clarity and ease of reading unique among editions of the classics; a vibrant, full-color cover design now complements these great texts with beautiful contemporary works of art. But the best feature must be Everyman's uniquely low price. Each Everyman title offers these extensive materials at a price that competes with the most inexpensive editions on the market-but Everyman Paperbacks have durable binding, quality paper, and the highest editorial and scholarly standards.

From the Inside Flap
Introduction by F. W. J. Hemmings; Translation by Leonard Tancock

From the Hardcover edition.

About the Author
Émile Zola (1840–1902) was the leading figure in the French school of naturalistic fiction. His principal work, Les Rougon-Macquart, is a panorama of mid-nineteenth century French life in a cycle of twenty novels which Zola wrote over a period of twenty-two years.

Roger Pearson is professor of French at the University of Oxford and fellow and tutor in French at The Queen’s College, Oxford.

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