A Recollection

Just like Jack Nicholson’s character in ‘About Schmidt,’ the narrator of ‘A Recollection’ is feeling useless.

He feels, to quote Morrissey, that ´Everyday is Like Sunday.’ To shake himself from his drudgery, he decides to take a stroll from Paris to catch a boat to Saint-Cloud.

After a dreamy stroll, he encounters a married couple, who seem to be in a spot of bother. Taken with the wife, the narrator agrees to help them, but will her company help or hinder his need for excitement?

Combining romance with waspish humour, Maupassant offers an interesting slice of middle-age life.

With memory as its central theme, ‘A Recollection’ is the ideal read for fans of Kazuo Ishiguro.



Hailed as one of the pioneers of the modern short story, Henri Ren Albert Guy de Maupassant (1850 - 1893) was born in Dieppe, France. After his parents’ divorce, Maupassant was cared for by his mother who had a passion for literature.

During his secondary education, he was introduced to the acclaimed novelist, Gustave Flaubert, who was to play a prominent part in Maupassant’s literary career.

The Franco-Prussian War saw the author enlist in the Navy, and his experiences influenced many of his books, including ‘Boule de Suif.’ Flaubert was to take him under his wing after the war, introducing him to realist and naturalist authors, such as Émile Zola and Ivan Turgenev.