Germinal (Penguin Classics) - Softcover

Émile Zola

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0140447423 ISBN 13: 9780140447422

Publisher: Penguin Classics, 2004

Synopsis

The thirteenth novel in Émile Zola’s great Rougon-Macquart sequence, Germinal expresses outrage at the exploitation of the many by the few, but also shows humanity’s capacity for compassion and hope.

Etienne Lantier, an unemployed railway worker, is a clever but uneducated young man with a dangerous temper. Forced to take a back-breaking job at Le Voreux mine when he cannot get other work, he discovers that his fellow miners are ill, hungry, and in debt, unable to feed and clothe their families. When conditions in the mining community deteriorate even further, Lantier finds himself leading a strike that could mean starvation or salvation for all.

• New translation

• Includes introduction, suggestions for further reading, filmography, chronology, explanatory notes, and glossary

About this title

About the Author:

Émile Zola (1840-1902) was the leading figure in the French school of naturalistic fiction. His principal work, Les Rougon-Macquart, is a panorama of mid-19th century French life, in a cycle of 20 novels which Zola wrote over a period of 22 years.

Review:

“[Germinal] made me realize that when books are considered ‘classics,’ most of the time they’re actually very readable and exciting.” —Daniel Radcliffe
 

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0140447423
• ISBN 13: 9780140447422
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 592