Marcel Proust (1871–1922) is a titan of twentieth century European literature. The stories that make up The Mysterious Correspondent were written when the author was still in his twenties. Having been discovered by the late Proust specialist Bernard de Fallois in the 1950s, they were held back from publication in France until 2019. Charlotte Mandell is a French literary translator of over 40 books that include Gustave Flaubert, Guy de Maupassant, Honoré de Balzac, Mathias Énard and Jean-Luc Nancy.

‘Finely translated and startlingly audacious… Elements of [Proust’s] greatness are already in place: his ability to combine the qualities of the satirist and the moralist; his curiosity about the workings of the human heart. There is even the first glimpse of his lasting discovery – that art, thought and analysis can draw the thorn of suffering.’

Marcel Proust (1871–1922) is a titan of twentieth century European literature. The stories that make up The Mysterious Correspondent were written when the author was still in his twenties. Having been discovered by the late Proust specialist Bernard de Fallois in the 1950s, they were held back from publication in France until 2019. Charlotte Mandell is a French literary translator of over 40 books that include Gustave Flaubert, Guy de Maupassant, Honoré de Balzac, Mathias Énard and Jean-Luc Nancy.

‘Finely translated and startlingly audacious… Elements of [Proust’s] greatness are already in place: his ability to combine the qualities of the satirist and the moralist; his curiosity about the workings of the human heart. There is even the first glimpse of his lasting discovery – that art, thought and analysis can draw the thorn of suffering.’

Marcel Proust (1871–1922) is a titan of twentieth century European literature. The stories that make up The Mysterious Correspondent were written when the author was still in his twenties. Having been discovered by the late Proust specialist Bernard de Fallois in the 1950s, they were held back from publication in France until 2019. Charlotte Mandell is a French literary translator of over 40 books that include Gustave Flaubert, Guy de Maupassant, Honoré de Balzac, Mathias Énard and Jean-Luc Nancy.

‘Finely translated and startlingly audacious… Elements of [Proust’s] greatness are already in place: his ability to combine the qualities of the satirist and the moralist; his curiosity about the workings of the human heart. There is even the first glimpse of his lasting discovery – that art, thought and analysis can draw the thorn of suffering.’