A History of the French Novel, Vol. 2 To the Close of the 19th Century
CHAPTER XII
THE OTHER "NON-NATURALS" OF THE SECOND EMPIRE 414
Feuillet--His novels generally--Brief notes on some: _Le Roman d'un jeune homme pauvre_--_M. de Camors_--Other books--_La Petite Comtesse_--_Julia de Trecoeur_--_Honneur d'Artiste_--_La Morte_--Misters the assassins--Alphonse Daudet and his curious position--His "personality"--His books from this point of view and others--His "plagiarisms"--His merits--About: _Le Roi des Montagnes_--_Tolla_--_Germaine_--_Madelon_--_Maitre Pierre_, etc.--Summing up--Ponson du Terrail and Gaboriau--The first: his general character--The second--_L'Affaire Lerouge_--Feydeau: _Sylvie_--_Fanny_--Others: _Daniel_--Droz--_Mr., Mme. et Bebe_ and _Entre Nous_--Cherbuliez--His general characteristics--Short survey of his books--Three eccentrics--Leon Cladel: _Les Va-nu-pieds_, etc.--Barbey d'Aurevilly: his criticism of novels--His novels themselves: _Les Diaboliques_ and others--His merits--And defects--Especially as shown in _L'Ensorcelee_--Champfleury--_Les Excentriques_.