Palace of books
By: Roger Grenier ; translated and with a foreword by Alice Kaplan
Contributors: Kaplan, Alice Yaeger
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press
Published: 2014
Language: eng
Number of pages: 150
ISBN-13: 9780226308340
Subjects: French literature; Authorship; Essays; History and criticism
Work titles: Palais des livres
Description: With Palace of Books, the author invites us to explore the domain of literature, its sweeping vistas and hidden recesses. Engaging such fundamental questions as why people feel the need to write, or what is involved in putting one's self on the page, or how a writer knows she's written her last sentence, Grenier marshals apposite passages from his favorite writers: Chekhov, Baudelaire, Proust, James, Kafka, Mansfield and many others. Those writers mingle companionably with tales from Grenier's half-century as an editor and friend to countless legendary figures, including Albert Camus, Romain Gary, Milan Kundera, and Brassai.
Notes: Translation from the French of: Palais des livres.

Includes bibliographical references.
Table of contents: title: Foreword by Alice Kaplan; title: "The land of poets"; title: Waiting and eternity; title: Leave-taking; title: Private life; title: Writing about love, again . . .; title: A half hour at the dentist's; title: Unfinished; title: Do I have anything left to say?; title: To be loved.