Bel Ami, or The History of a Scoundrel

Written by Guy de Maupassant

Narrated by LibriVox Community

“He had faith in his good fortune, in that power of attraction which he felt within him - a power so irresistible that all women yielded to it.”

Though firmly set in 1880s Paris, Maupassant's gripping story of an amoral journalist on the make could, with only slight modifications of detail, be updated to the 1960s, to the Reagan-Thatcher years, or maybe to the present day. Anti-hero Georges Duroy is a down-at-heel ex-soldier of no particular talent. Good-looking but somewhat lacking in self-confidence, he discovers an ability to control and exploit women - whereupon his career in journalism takes off, fuelled by the corruption of colleagues and government arrivistes. He may be a provincial Don Juan, but he is neither accident-prone nor heading for a fall...

A Hollywood screen adaptation is in preparation at the time of recording.(Summary by Martin Geeson)

• Language: English
• Publisher: LibriVox
• Release date: Aug 25, 2014

Guy de Maupassant

Guy de Maupassant was a French writer and poet considered to be one of the pioneers of the modern short story whose best-known works include "Boule de Suif," "Mother Sauvage," and "The Necklace." De Maupassant was heavily influenced by his mother, a divorcée who raised her sons on her own, and whose own love of the written word inspired his passion for writing. While studying poetry in Rouen, de Maupassant made the acquaintance of Gustave Flaubert, who became a supporter and life-long influence for the author. De Maupassant died in 1893 after being committed to an asylum in Paris.

Reviews for Bel Ami, or The History of a Scoundrel

[ljgrace96 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Terrible narration. Exaggerated, unnecessary inflection, and slow pace of reading makes it unbearable.