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Liked It “TrainWreckB said: 4 stars |
Didn’t Like It “Nana may be a classic, but I found it to be very dull and long-winded.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“TrainWreckB said: 4 stars
1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die Shelf wrote this review Monday, January 30, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Get your French Dictiionary!”
“I read this book as part of a "Literary Cityscapes" class at the University of Chicago. The focus of the class was on novels in which Paris was an important factor if not a character. In Nana we have a novel inspired by real life characters, an operetta singer, who are transformed into a steamy story romance and demimondaines as the Second Empire is about to expire. I enjoyed the realistic description of the light opera scene with Zola's detail depiction of the performance of La blonde Vénus, a fictional operetta modelled after Offenbach's La belle Hélène, in which Nana is cast as the lead. Nana unfortunately leads a life not atypical for paramours (see La Traviata) and yet, the realistic portrayal of Parisian society raises this novel above the typical story. Zola again achieves artistic brilliance with his naturalistic novelization of real life. ”
jwhenderson wrote this review Monday, July 18, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Nana is the story of an Aphrodite-like seductive actress who ruins men's lives with her charm, greed and thoughtless selfishness. Though a second-rate at best, Nana's beauty captivates her audience and propels her fame. Men lavish gifts, and she becomes the mistress to several married men, but she is always penniless and in debt despite her extravagant lifestyle. In the end, she dies of smallpox and her decayed soul finally shows through her perfect exterior. This is a fabulous tale of the perils to which a soul infected with excess, lust and greed can infest the world around them. The storyline does move rather slowly, but Zola's stories usually take the long route to fruition.”
Linda I wrote this review Saturday, April 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Amazingly modern and brutal story of a courtesan is truly unflinching. It is impossible to look away for this frank portrait.”
Jeffrey Sanzel wrote this review Saturday, March 19, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Nana may be a classic, but I found it to be very dull and long-winded.”
Hope O wrote this review Saturday, March 5, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Au début du roman, on a du mal à se retrouver parmi la pléthore de personnages qui sont introduits dès l'incipit. Mais au fur et à mesure que l'histoire évolue, ces personnages se dispersent pour au final avoir un role important à jouer dans la vie de Nana. Un à un, cette dernière ruine les hommes qu'elle cotoie, leur soutirant de l'argent en leur offrant sa tendresse en échange. Pour certains c'est la faillite financière, pour d'autres, c'est le désarroi absolu qui les envahit, simplement pour avoir voulu plaire à une femme débauchée; afin de la permettre de vivre dans l'opulence dont elle convoitait, une revanche sur son enfance pauvre et souillée. Dur d'imaginer que sous sa beauté captivante, se dissimulait une femme sombre et déviante. Dans ce roman, Zola a démontré avec force la domination de la femme sur l'homme (il était temps), ce que j'ai notamment apprécier =) mais ce qui m'a sincèrement marquée c'est le dénouement: la splendide Vénus qui se fane, qui perd de sa beauté pour laisser place à la répugnante Nana délaissée de tous, mais qui au final, aura assouvi une vengeance longtemps dissimulé.
Tracy wrote this review Monday, January 24, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
"Son oeuvre de ruine et de mort était faite, la mouche envolée de l'ordure des faubourgs, apportant le ferment des pourritures sociales, avait empoisonnés ces hommes, rien qu'à se poser sur eux. C'était bien, c'était juste, elle avait vengé son monde, les gueux et les abandonnés. Et tandis que, dans une gloire, son sexe montait et rayonnait sur ses victimes étendues, pareil à un soleil levant qui éclaire un champ de carnage, elle gardait son inconscience de bête superbe, ignorante de sa besogne, bonne fille toujours." ”
“A favourite of mine. Nana is such an anti heroine, but we love her anyway.”
KAY W wrote this review Tuesday, January 18, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Un très très bon Zola, aussi florissant qu'Au Bonheur des dames mais moins idéaliste. Probablement sa meilleure héroïne aussi.”
Clementine B wrote this review Saturday, September 4, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“caietul nr.1,rezumat nr.119”
Nevena A wrote this review Sunday, May 23, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Get your French Dictiionary!”
TrainWreckB wrote this review Wednesday, May 12, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
