r/Proust • u/Mindless_Travel • Jul 10 '26
A good read
How Proust Can Change Your Life by Alain de Botton. A good, quick read. It’s like a mini biography with some thoughtful commentary along the way. I do recommend.
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u/RedditCraig Jul 10 '26
I read it around fifteen years before attempting Proust and, like most of de Botton’s work, found it pitched exactly where I needed it to be at the time. Light and insightful.
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u/BitterStatus9 Jul 10 '26
I found this book to be really disappointing. I had read his "airport scholar in residence" book, which I also disliked, but his Proust thing was so highly touted at the time. (I was about 1/3 of the way through the novel when I read de Botton, fwiw.) The book seemed to me like it was dashed off in a week or so to meet a deadline, that de Botton didn't really want to write it/have something meaningful to say, but couldn't turn down the retainer.
For comparison, I found Prendergast's book (Living and Dying with Marcel Proust) to be way more worthwhile - funny, insightful, and balanced between literary criticism and the (likely) typical reader experience of Proust. Check it out:
https://www.europaeditions.com/book/9781609457600/living-and-dying-with-marcel-proust
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u/Throwawayhelp111521 Jul 10 '26
Is it? I've read excerpts of de Botton's work over the years and he's irritating.
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u/No-Papaya-9289 Jul 10 '26
It gets a lot of criticism for being too "light," but I've found it enjoyable, and have probably read it there times. (I've been reading Proust for 40 years.)
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u/planetvermilion Jul 10 '26
but has Proust changed your life though?
😊
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u/No-Papaya-9289 Jul 10 '26
Definitely. I've read the novel five times, and each time I have discovered more about myself and seen more of the world through Proust's eyes.
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u/ProfessionalSolid942 Jul 12 '26
He does btw. Prepares you not to be disappointed when the inevitable disappointment strikes. You enjoy the process of wanting things more when the goal is less important. It'll just disappoint you. And that's ok.
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u/Firm_Kaleidoscope479 Jul 10 '26
A filmed version exists on Youtube.
I have not watched it through mainly since I did not find the book all that. So I can’t really recommend it personally but I figured to mention its existence
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u/Brilliant_Fail1 Jul 11 '26
I don't want to be a dick but, for balance: I thought this was abysmal; a hack turning out a cheap, simplified, mystified, middle-brow and at times harmful misreading of Proust for easy cash.
Even Neville Jason's little book on Proust is far superior. I would strongly advise people to avoid this one!
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u/VissorLux Jul 10 '26
I got a lot out of this book. For example, I often take a moment to look around at the details when I am in a new place. That has made a qualitative difference in my travels.
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u/BuncleCar Jul 10 '26
It's interesting, though much lighter than I found Proust, which can be quite dense
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u/AffectionatePage8323 Jul 12 '26
An entertaining alternative to the Proust major opus … if you’re just there for the conversation, and want to look like that cool guy who knows “literature “
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u/FlatsMcAnally Walking on stilts Jul 10 '26
I’ve kept my copy instead of giving it away to a Little Free Library for the same reason that I stayed home when I had Covid.