{"product_id":"2026200011023-secondhand-selected-short-stories","title":"Selected Short Stories","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003eCondition: Good to fair. Paperback. Page Condition: Good - possible tanning. Markings: possible previous owner inscription.   \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHonoré de Balzac stands as one of the towering figures of nineteenth-century French literature, and this anthology gathers some of his finest short fiction into a single essential volume. Each story showcases Balzac's razor-sharp understanding of human ambition, desire, and social hypocrisy, set against the vivid backdrop of post-revolutionary France. With a prose style that is simultaneously satirical and deeply compassionate, the collection presents characters from every rung of Parisian society — merchants, aristocrats, artists, and outcasts — all rendered with remarkable psychological precision. This Penguin Classics edition, translated for a modern English-speaking audience, brings Balzac's legendary narrative power to new generations of readers, illustrating why his work remains an indispensable cornerstone of world literature.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48956123021531,"sku":"2026200011023-SECONDHAND","price":10.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/85e398ce-c77c-487a-bb95-680d37e6577b.png?v=1783497995","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026200011023-secondhand-selected-short-stories","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}