Bel Ami cover art

Bel Ami

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Bel Ami

By: Guy de Maupassant
Narrated by: John McDonough
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About this listen

Guy de Maupassant is revered for his naturalistic fiction, which brilliantly captures flesh-and-blood characters as it evokes the most telling details of everyday life. Considered one of the finest French novels ever written, Bel Ami follows journalist Georges Duroy and his increasing stature among the Paris elite. With an immense thirst for power, Georges is not above an almost gleeful use of wealthy mistresses to achieve his ends.

©2001 Margaret Mauldon (P)2011 Recorded Books, LLC Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction

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All stars
Most relevant
By modern standards the “hero” really is a horrible man. Sadly his conduct and vaulting desire for power may be lauded by many aspiring individuals in their own quests for influence. An old tale with an immortal message! A surprisingly queasy listen!!

An overpowering nausea regarding the conduct of the principle protagonist

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I loved listening to this book. It is so beautifully written, so evocative, the characters flawed and real.
The narrator is excellent, perfect for this piece. I would definitely recommend Bel Ami.

A Great Listen

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Would you try another book written by Guy de Maupassant or narrated by John McDonough?

A North American translation and North American accent are barriers to accessing Maupassant's novel. In addition, French pronunciation is lamentable - remember when you think you're in Caen you're really in Cannes and 'Jock' Rival is really a Frenchman called Jacques......On the plus side John McDonough reads expressively and intelligently at a sensible pace.

Maupassant in American

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I really enjoyed this one over the course of a week in Tenerife and undertook it with the intention of pairing it with the new film version of the novel which doesn’t subsequently seem to have hit the cinemas with anything like the impact that I thought it would have. It has been a good many years since I read the series of Normandy short stories by Maupassant, but it is nice to report that the writing still is as open and accessible as I previously recalled and the narrative was as engaging as I would have anticipated.

For all the recent comment on how contemporary the subject-matter, this story of Paris is dated in the detail but ‘very modern’ in the pre-occupations - which just goes to illustrate that life in all its complexities doesn’t suffer time or national changes.

As always, the perfect way to escape the day to day grind into a new world for the holiday week - really enjoyed.

Des vacances à Paris

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