Decadent Prose Pieces

This brief collection of 27 short, dense works from Trézenik (1855–1902), a long-unsung pioneer of the decadent movement, ranges from the disquieting and evocative to the lackluster and flat. Silence and boredom on Parisian sidewalks, sympathy shared between humans and other animals, and explorations of sexuality and death through the eyes of children feature prominently in these often fable-like tales, many of which pass in a blur. The standouts—including “The Omnibus Driver,” which follows a strange man at the helm of a horse-drawn carriage; “Child’s Play,” about two children playing with a fly; and “The Good God,” a humorous depiction of God during creation—showcase Trézenik’s skill for the hauntingly peculiar, injecting the collection with welcome shades of darkness. At its best, Trézenik’s prose is brisk and awash with black humor and licentiousness. Though there are no showpiece stories in the lot to entice the casual reader, scholars and devotees of literary decadence and fin de siècle French fiction will find pleasure in this first English translation of Trézenik’s work. (May)