In his stories Guy de Maupassant (1850 1893) blended brilliantly realistic depictions of characters moving against carefully described backgrounds with an objectivity and universality that has earned him a place among the finest of all short-story writers. In this collection of seven of his most popular stories, each tale reflects both the author's intimate familiarity with Paris and the provinces in the Belle Epoque, as well as a nonjudgmental humanism that is one of Maupassant's most attractive qualities.
Included in this volume are his celebrated masterpiece "Boule de Suif," along with...