Louis-Ferdinand Céline

[moz4prez]

is great. I discovered him in high school. He is the bee's knees of western letters. His is the poetry we'd all die of were it not for our own suffering! He's the Marquis de Sade of the 20th century, I'm convinced.

So, uh, anybody else here mesmerized by this scumbag's work?

[Tinoire]

1. Death on the Installment Plan... Who can ever forget?

Journey to the End of the Night...

You are right... Sade for our times.

Yes, I am mesmerized or at least I was. Have been wanting to re-read him and plan to as soon as I get done with my re-read of Les Miserables.

Peace

[SOteric]

2. I adore Louis-Ferdinand Céline

But he's less the Marquis de Sade and more Evelyn Waugh.

[moz4prez]

3. WELL!!!!!!!!!

Waugh was a 20th century novelist . . . I said he was the de Sade of the 20th century. =\

Anyway, how do you figure? where are the similarities?

[SOteric]

4. Both are masters of dark, sophisticated humour.

If you're in the mood to reread Celine, approach it as though it were the script of a Monty Python skit. It helps if you've a familiarity with the French sense of the absurd.