Charles Swann is a man about town with friends in high places. At Parisian society gatherings hosted by the wealthy Verdurin couple, he meets the intriguing Odette de Crécy. Though struck by how different they are, Swann’s feelings for Odette deepen. As the Verdurin circle expands, he is overcome by doubts and unhealthy jealousies. Odette distances herself, and Swann is convinced he has a rival for her affections. Behaving erratically and tortured by spiralling thoughts, Swann’s love becomes a sickly poison.

Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library: a series of stunning, cloth-bound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition of Swann in Love is translated by C. K. Scott Moncrieff with an introduction by Marion Schmid.

Proust’s masterpiece is one of the seminal works of the twentieth century, recording its narrator’s experiences as he grows up, falls in love and lives through the First World War. A profound reflection on art, time, memory, self and loss, it is often viewed as the definitive modern novel. C. K. Scott Moncrieff’s famous translation from the 1920s is today regarded as a classic in its own right and is now available in three volumes in Penguin Classics.

This first volume includes Swann’s Way and Within a Budding Grove.

‘Scott Moncrieff’s [volumes] belong to that special category of translations which are themselves literary masterpieces … his book is one of those translations, such as the Authorized Version of the Bible itself, which can never be displaced’ – A. N. Wilson

‘For the reader wishing to tackle Proust your guide must be C K Scott Moncrieff … There are some who believe his headily perfumed translation of À la recherche du temps perdu conjures Belle Époque France more vividly even than the original’ – Telegraph

‘I was more interested and fascinated by your rendering than by Proust’s creation’ – Joseph Conrad to Scott Moncrieff

This is the first volume of In Search of Lost Time, one of the greatest French novels of the twentieth century. Travelling back through time, the narrator tells the story of events long since past – his childhood happiness and sadness, and memories brought famously back to life by the taste of a madeleine. His family’s friend and neighbour, the aristocratic Swann, weaves through the tale. We learn of Swann’s passionate love affair with Odette, a jealous love that creates a model for the narrator’s own relationships. All Proust’s great themes begin here: time and memory, love and loss, art and the artistic vocation.

THE ACCLAIMED FULLY REVISED EDITION OF THE SCOTT MONCRIEFF AND KILMARTIN TRANSLATION

The best translation available: ‘A really major, significant achievement, and one that you should put on your Christmas list immediately’ Guardian

VINTAGE FRENCH CLASSICS – six masterpieces of French fiction in collectable editions.

This first volume includes Swann’s Way and Within a Budding Grove.

Proust’s masterpiece is one of the seminal works of the twentieth century, recording its narrator’s experiences as he grows up, falls in love and lives through the First World War. A profound reflection on art, time, memory, self and loss, it is often viewed as the definitive modern novel. C. K. Scott Moncrieff’s famous translation from the 1920s is today regarded as a classic in its own right and is now available in three volumes in Penguin Classics.

This second volume includes The Guermantes Way and Cities of the Plain.

‘Scott Moncrieff’s [volumes] belong to that special category of translations which are themselves literary masterpieces … his book is one of those translations, such as the Authorized Version of the Bible itself, which can never be displaced’ – A. N. Wilson

‘For the reader wishing to tackle Proust your guide must be C K Scott Moncrieff … There are some who believe his headily perfumed translation of À la recherche du temps perdu conjures Belle Époque France more vividly even than the original’ – Telegraph

‘I was more interested and fascinated by your rendering than by Proust’s creation’ – Joseph Conrad to Scott Moncrieff

Proust’s masterpiece is one of the seminal works of the twentieth century, recording its narrator’s experiences as he grows up, falls in love and lives through the First World War. A profound reflection on art, time, memory, self and loss, it is often viewed as the definitive modern novel. C. K. Scott Moncrieff’s famous translation from the 1920s is today regarded as a classic in its own right and is now available in three volumes in Penguin Classics.

This third volume includes The Captive, The Sweet Cheat Gone and Time Regained.

‘Scott Moncrieff’s [volumes] belong to that special category of translations which are themselves literary masterpieces … his book is one of those translations, such as the Authorized Version of the Bible itself, which can never be displaced’ – A. N. Wilson

‘For the reader wishing to tackle Proust your guide must be C K Scott Moncrieff … There are some who believe his headily perfumed translation of À la recherche du temps perdu conjures Belle Époque France more vividly even than the original’ – Telegraph

‘I was more interested and fascinated by your rendering than by Proust’s creation’ – Joseph Conrad to Scott Moncrieff

New writing from the literary master

Throughout Proust’s life, nine of his short stories remained unseen – the writer never even spoke of them. Perhaps he was not ready to share the early themes he was nurturing for his masterpiece, In Search of Lost Time. Or perhaps, in dealing directly with gay desire, they were too audacious – too near to life – for the censorious society of the time.

In these stories, published in English for the first time, we find an intimate portrait of a young author full of darkness, complexity and melancholy, longing to reveal himself to the world.

In the opening volume of Proust’s great novel, the narrator travels backwards in time in order to tell the story of a love affair that had taken place before his own birth. Swann’s jealous love for Odette provides a prophetic model of the narrator’s own relationships. All Proust’s great themes – time and memory, love and loss, art and the artistic vocation – are here in kernel form.

‘Surely the greatest novelist of the 20th century’ Telegraph