The Confession of A Child of the Century

A rare, superb grand limited edition de luxe with the translation from the French by T.F. Rogerson. Bound in sumptuous pale green silk with illustration and lettering to the front and spine in black and gilt and borders in black. Housed in the original green slipcase. No. 25 of 1,000 copies printed on Japanese vellum for Subscribers only. Includes 10 lovely etchings with tissue guards, each of which is presented in two different states. Condition of book: about fine with just a few light marks to the silk, chiefly at the foot of the spine, and endpapers. The slipcase is VG, showing some fading and light wear but it has done the job of keeping the book itself in lovely condition. Presents very well - of gift quality and certain to appeal to collectors of fine editions of classic literature. Story note: Inspired by his scandalous real-life affair with the flamboyant woman who called herself George Sand, Alfred de Musset's Confession is a passionate account of a young man's rite of passage. It tells the story of Octave, desperate to be more than an 'average man', who searches for happiness first as a debauched libertine, until his mistress Elise is unfaithful, and then in an austere life in the countryside, where he falls in love with the selfless Brigitte. But as he becomes consumed by insane jealousy and convinced that Brigitte will betray him, Octave brings about his own destruction. A vivid, opulent portrayal of obsession and despair, this is also a philosophical portrait of a man and his times, expressing the failed idealism of the Romantic generation of the early nineteenth century.