Guide Rating -

This may very well be the funniest and most interesting biography you'll ever read. Alain de Botton, tongue firmly in cheek, analyzes the life of the celebrated French author Marcel Proust. With elegant language, black and white drawings, and a knack for understatement, de Botton playfully pokes fun at Proust's hypochondria and extreme tendency toward dramatization. No facet of Proust's life is spared, from his perpetual melancholy to his infamous never-ending sentences. De Botton even goes so far as to analyze the actions taken by Proust's characters when they encounter difficulties and to offer alternative solutions. The book is well-researched, funny, and very informative.

The book is loosely written in the style of a farcical self-help manual, with such chapters as "How to Suffer Successfully" and "How to Express Your Emotions." For each lesson, de Botton provides information and opinions about Proust's mannerisms and habits, then explains how to adapt them to your own life.

Swiss-born Alain de Botton is the author of three novels on love and relationships. His style is always fluid and flowery, and his wonderful sense of humor is subtle enough to make you want to reread his books again and again. His insights into human nature, particularly relationships, are right on target.

You don't have to love (or hate) Marcel Proust to read this book, but you will enjoy it more if you are somewhat familiar with some of his writings. Alain de Botton clearly finds Proust an eccentric genius, but the real genius here is de Botton, who manages to bring humor and enlightenment to even the driest of ideas.