This novel is also known under its French title of "Ursule Mirouët"; it is the first of Balzac's "Scenes from Provincial Life" section of his Human Comedy. Although I didn't realize it when I started, it is good that I read this book before "Another Study of Woman" (next up for me in "Scenes from Private Life") as Ursula appears in that one as a married woman which the Project Gutenberg addendum (listing which characters appear in which other books) alerted me to!

Ursula, orphaned as a toddler & taken under the protection of her godfather Dr. Denis Minoret, is reviled by Dr. Minoret's relatives as much as she is loved by the doctor & his few friends. Balzac does a wonderful depiction of avarice and the way people judge others by their own character. To his greedy relatives, the girl must be always scheming to get hold of the doctor's money & it is their responsibility to put a stop to that to protect their inheritance.

I delighted in this novel with one exception - the supernatural aspects. The episode of the Swedenborgian in Paris & then later Ursula's dreams were necessary for the plot but were for me unconvincing & unrealistic. That doesn't mean they weren't fun to read though!

Read in my Project Gutenberg Kindle edition "The Works of Balzac" ( )

This novel is also known under its French title of "Ursule Mirouët"; it is the first of Balzac's "Scenes from Provincial Life" section of his Human Comedy. Although I didn't realize it when I started, it is good that I read this book before "Another Study of Woman" (next up for me in "Scenes from Private Life") as Ursula appears in that one as a married woman which the Project Gutenberg addendum (listing which characters appear in which other books) alerted me to!

Ursula, orphaned as a toddler & taken under the protection of her godfather Dr. Denis Minoret, is reviled by Dr. Minoret's relatives as much as she is loved by the doctor & his few friends. Balzac does a wonderful depiction of avarice and the way people judge others by their own character. To his greedy relatives, the girl must be always scheming to get hold of the doctor's money & it is their responsibility to put a stop to that to protect their inheritance.

I delighted in this novel with one exception - the supernatural aspects. The episode of the Swedenborgian in Paris & then later Ursula's dreams were necessary for the plot but were for me unconvincing & unrealistic. That doesn't mean they weren't fun to read though!

Read in my Project Gutenberg Kindle edition "The Works of Balzac" ( )

AG-1

'a remarkable tour de force', 31 Dec. 2011

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This review is from: Ursule Mirouet (Classics) (Paperback)
When elderly Dr Minoret settles in his family home town along with a young female ward, Ursule, his vulture-like relatives are ever in the wings waiting to inherit. They grow to hate Ursule, convinced she is scheming to get 'their' money. Without giving too much away, there is a crime, a touch of the supernatural and a pair of starcrossed lovers.
It had me enthralled from page 1; I can see why Balzac considered it 'a remarkable tour de force'. The characterisations of the horrible relatives are brilliantly done eg 'his face was one of those in which it is hard for the thoughtful observer to see any trace of a soul beneath the florid tints of gross coarsening flesh'. Recommended. ( )

My first Balzac, and although I hear it's not his absolute best, it was a wild carriage-ride straight through 'til the surprise ending. Definitely more Balzac in my future. ( )