Against Nature (A Rebours) (Penguin Classics)

After reading "Submission" by Michel Houllebecq, where the main character's career revolves around J.K. Huysmans and "The Strange Death of Europe" by Douglas Murray, which mentions the book "Au Rebours" and the author's journey to salvation, I decided I should try reading the book itself. Upon finishing it, I can honestly say I've never really read anything like it in classical literature. For a book about nothing, as many claim, this book has a lot to say about, well, everything.The book focuses on the life, or rather the lack thereof, of Des Esseinties. The main character is an older, somewhat wealthy gentlemen who is so fed up with his meaningless lifestyle that he goes into complete seclusion in the countryside. Hiding from the world in his house at Fontenay, Des Esseinties reflects upon his education, his personal relationships, his expectations and disappointments, and, most of all, his problems with both the Christian religion and the current state of materialistic French society. Des Esseinties spares no one in his disparaging revelries, but through it all is the sense that he is searching or missing something. His isolation, like everything else he's tried, inevitably fails him and his words in the final chapter are full of emotional despair for the things in life he cannot find, nor entirely understand.I went into this book not really knowing what to expect. At its core, it's essentially a very long, albeit detailed and entertaining, whine. For that alone, this book has every reason to fail, and yet I found myself as unexpectedly fascinated by the insights of the main character as the French people did in 1884. Huysmans, through his character, spares no one and nothing from his mockery, finding only solace in his reading of books, mostly in the Latin tongue. The sheer amount of literature and historical figures covered in this book, if only briefly, is somewhat remarkable. Des Esseinties tries to keep himself entertained by French society and, when that fails, he turns to perfumes, artwork, travel and finally literature. All of these things provide him only temporary respite as he searches for a faith in something he can't describe. The overall picture painted is one of an unprincipled society drifting further and further into meaningless drivel to fill the void left behind by religion and community. In a sense, that description doesn't seem that much different from today.I think what I enjoyed the most, however, was reading the letter by Huysman himself twenty year later. As critics from all sides lambasted this book, and him for writing such a wretched thing, one critic stood out to him by simply saying, "After such a book, it only remains for the author to choose between the muzzle of a pistol or the foot of the cross." Huysman made his choice in the end and found what he was searching for at long last. Perhaps true peace can only be found after knowing so much, yet understanding so little and finally being able to ask the right questions.French authors seem to be excellent at creating biting commentary in worlds full of ennui. I got much, much more out of this novel than I was expecting, but I also understand why someone would not like this book. If you're interested in learning more about the disintegration of France, and really Europe as a whole, during this time period, then I would suggest picking this up and giving it a chance.

I'll assume that you already know about this book, or can get what you need from the other reviews. I'm just focusing on the edition: the 2004 Penguin Classics reprint of Robert Baldick's 1956 translation but with a new introduction and notes by Patrick McGuinness (and a new cover, of which more anon).Now, I think of myself as a Huysmans 'completist,' and would have thought that I have a copy of just about every edition. But I've never seen this one in a bookstore (even here in NYC) and only came across it by accident on Amazon. As other reviewers have noted, the translation, though older, is much more readable than the Oxford Classics one. The latter has far more annotation, especially for the surveys of Latin and French "decadent" literature, but you really don't need that for more than your first reading. This is the edition to get if you plan to revisit the work from time to time, as I did (and do).Why else? Well, the Oxford edtion is printed on cheap, thin paper that browned almost immediately, and produces irritating "see-through" effects; the cover, of my copy at least, instantly creased itself rather than folding, making it hard to hold (and ugly). This Penguin is on bright, white paper, and with larger type (though consequently is also a bit larger in size). Des Esseintes would approve!But the main reasons are two: the intro, and the cover. McGuinness does a much better, or at least more interesting, job of relating the book to its time and ours, bringing in far more interesting tie-ins (Breton's "black 'umour" rather than "Huysmans's anality", Marianne Faithful saying she'd only bed guys who read the book, rather than Oxford's cringe-inducing comparison to Kurt Cobain(!)), though unlike Terry Hale in his introduction to the Penguin La Bas, he doesn't pick up on the fact that Huysmans' job at the "Interior Ministry" was actually comparable to our Dept. of Homeland Security rather than the traffic bureau.But it was the cover that first led me to notice this on Amazon. It's a wonderful portrait by Franz Kupka (not Kafka!), "The Yellow Scale," which depicts an amazingly burnt out aesthetic type, wrapped up in a yellow robe, yellow book (of course) in one hand, and cigarette burning out in his other limp, yellow hand. Against the rest of the regulation black Penguin Classics cover, it's quite striking, and far more original than the old cover, Whistler's portrait of Montesquiou, or Oxford's Salome.(While McGuinness's intro makes a good case for "Against the Grain" as a better title, beware of the Dover edtion under that name: it's old and expurgated, as is the illustrated one from the '30s). Buyer beware!)In short, this is the one to get for the true Huysmaniac!

A period piece.Maybe ideal for a University course but very dated.

I enjoyed the description of moods and psychology of restlessness cum insatiable greed and curiosity

Superb book, an all time classic

Everything about it,a pleasure

Huysmans' fantastic novel has been influential on writers when it first came out and up to the present day, after all you can obviously see the beginnings of such novels as 'Perfume' amongst its pages. The only main character, Des Esseintes has lived a life that mirrors Dorian Gray, and Dorian indeed reads this book in  The Picture of Dorian Gray (Penguin Classics) . You do get glimpses in this novel of Des Esseintes' hedonistic lifestyle before he seeks 'rest'. Told by his doctors that his lifestyle will kill him, Des Esseintes retires into seclusion and loneliness. However even here his life is full of eccentricity and dissipation.Des Esseintes changes one lifestyle for another and contemplates upon a series of subjects in his new home that he has bizarrely furnished and fitted out. A weird and captivating tale this book is now a cult classic and has held people enthralled since its first publication, indeed it is difficult to put it down, and remains in the mind long after. As I wrote in my review for  The Damned (Penguin Classics) , Huysmans can write about literally anything and hold you in captivation, truly he was one of the worlds greatest writers. In this book mention is made of Barbey D'Aurevilly, and the book Les Diaboliques: She Devils (Empire of the Senses) . This is a book of short stories and is well worth a read.Along with the story and an introduction you also get here Huysmans' preface written 20 years later, and also reviews and responses to the novel from such luminaries as Oscar Wilde, Emile Zola and Barbey D'Aurevilly, amognst others. The Picture of Dorian Gray (Penguin Classics)The Damned (Penguin Classics)Les Diaboliques: She Devils (Empire of the Senses)