Originally published in French in 1978 as La Vie mode d'emploi by Editions Hachette Litterature, Paris--T.p. verso."

One overcast weekend in October 1974, Georges Perec set out in quest of the -infraordinary-: the humdrum, the non-event, the everyday---what happens, - as he put it, -when nothing happens.- His choice of locale was Place Saint-Sulpice, where, ensconced behind first one cafe window, then another, he spent three days recording everything to pass through his field of vision: the people walking by; the buses and driving-school cars caught in their routes; the pigeons moving suddenly en masse; a wedding (and then a funeral) at the church in the center of the square; the signs, symbols and slogans...

Darkly funny account of the office worker's mindset by the celebrated French novelist

A long-suffering employee in a big corporation has summoned up the courage to ask for a raise. But as he runs through the looming encounter in his mind, his neuroses come to the surface: What is the best day to see the boss? What if he doesn't offer you a seat when you go into his office?

The Art of Asking Your Boss for a Raise is a hilarious account of an employee losing his identity--and possibly his sanity--as he tries to put on the most acceptable face for the corporate world, with...