At 16:27 20-06-03 -0400, Mark Sullivan wrote:
>>Etienne wrote:
>>
>>"(see Francis Carco for instance, or even parts
of the memoirs written
>by Vidocq)."
>
>I've got but never read a Black Lizard od Carco's
Perversity (translated
>by Jean Rhys). Is it a good book?
I didn't read this book (Perversité 1927). It was never
republished in French after 1955. From what I know it had a
rather good reputation, considered as one of the good novels
by Carco. A novel about the lower end of the underworld, it
seems it also handles some characters having drug problems
(??) - opium and its derivates were popular amongst the
French intelligentsia of the early 20th century. The sources
for drugs where already to be found with the underworld, low
grade show people, special bars... which explain why this
kind of surroundings were still haunted by upper middle-class
artists in search of drugs, and not only by poor painters,
poets or writers like the legend of Montmartre reports. His
best novels are "Jesus la Caille" (1914) and "L'homme
traqu馱uot;-1922-
(literally:the chased man) both having the underworld as
background. Pure slang works by Carco are to be found in his
songs and in some of his poems; in his novels slang was only
partially used, and not at all in some others. He was rather
prolific, as we have to add plays, essays on art, documents
about the low or forgotten classes of French society, and
several volumes of memoirs on his long bibliography.
>>"Another one was André Œe Breton starting
with his famous "Du
>>rififi chez les hommes"-1953 (slang for : 'Clash
amongst the Though
>>Guys'), and followed by many more."
>
>I take it that this is not surrealist Andre
Breton?
Mark, You're right Le Breton has nothing to do with
André ‚reton (writer and
"Pope" of the French surrealists before WW2). I made a lapsus
(of the calami kind...)in my previous message: the HB
writer's full name is *Auguste* Le Breton. Sorry for the
confusion!
E.Borgers Hard-Boiled Mysteries http://www.geocities.com/Athens/6384
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