The Penguin Podcast is back! Listen Now
Swann's Way

Swann's Way

Vintage Classics French Series

Summary

The definitive translation of a truly great French novel - Proust's beautiful, atmospheric story of memory and loss.

This is the first volume of In Search of Lost Time, one of the greatest French novels of the twentieth century. Travelling back through time, the narrator tells the story of events long since past - his childhood happiness and sadness, and memories brought famously back to life by the taste of a madeleine. His family's friend and neighbour, the aristocratic Swann, weaves through the tale. We learn of Swann's passionate love affair with Odette, a jealous love that creates a model for the narrator's own relationships. All Proust's great themes begin here: time and memory, love and loss, art and the artistic vocation.

THE ACCLAIMED FULLY REVISED EDITION OF THE SCOTT MONCRIEFF AND KILMARTIN TRANSLATION

The best translation available: 'A really major, significant achievement, and one that you should put on your Christmas list immediately' Guardian

VINTAGE FRENCH CLASSICS - six masterpieces of French fiction in collectable editions.

Reviews

  • My advice is to plunge straight into Volume 1, Swann's Way there are many who swear the experience has permanently enriched their lives
    Daily Mail

About the author

Marcel Proust

Proust was born in Auteuil, France in 1871. He began writing his masterpiece, À la recherche du temps perdu, in 1909, and worked on it until his death in 1922, following several years of poor health during which he had been confined to his bedroom.
Learn More

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more