Why people recommend it
The Belly of Paris by Émile Zola is a sweeping naturalistic novel depicting the vibrant, bustling world of the Parisian central markets during the Second Empire. The book was discussed on The Book Review podcast on July 18, 2024, by host Pamela Paul across two episodes. In the episode titled Power and Punishment, Paul mentioned that she was actively reading Zola's novel, having started it the previous week. She returned to the topic in the subsequent episode titled Lives on the Line, where she elaborated further on her reading habits. Paul explained that tackling Zola's book was part of a larger personal reading project that had originally begun with Victor Hugo's Les Misérables, designed to finally conquer canonical French literature she had been putting off for years. Her remarks framed the classic novel as both a personal challenge and an engaging literary journey into nineteenth-century French society, capturing the sensory overload and intricate social stratification that define Zola's celebrated Rougon-Macquart series.
Who recommended it
- Pamela Paul Recommended
Pamela Paul — 2 mentions
“um but I'm reading the belly of Paris by Emil zolah which is sort of part of my project that began with Le misera to actually finally read French books that I had been putting off”
“so I'm reading the book that I started last week Emil zolah is the belly of Paris”
Also mentioned in the same episodes
- Germinal
- A Colony in a Nation
- A Kids' Guide to America's First Ladies
- Against Love
- Approaching Eye Level
- Bento's Sketchbook
Other mentions (1: passing, ad reads, own books)
“I actually started reading Emil zolah the belly of Paris but I will wait to talk about that and I'll talk instead about the book that I just finished reading”