If lush, painstakingly researched historical epics are your thing, "Salammbô" is a wild ride. Flaubert takes you deep into ancient Carthage with sumptuous detail - from sacred rituals to brutal battlefields, it's a feast for readers who appreciate immersive settings and intense, larger-than-life intrigue. Fans of gritty dramas, French exotica, and rich, decadent prose will find plenty to savor. It’s particularly appealing to those fascinated by the clash of cultures, power games, and the darker sides of human ambition.

Who May Not Like This Book:

If you’re all about tight plots or relatable, introspective characters, this might not be your cup of tea. The violence is unflinching, the prose extremely ornate, and the pacing can get bogged down in atmospheric detail. Some found the gore and ritual elements excessive, and the emotional distance between reader and characters challenging. If you prefer your historical fiction light and breezy, or dislike novels heavy on description, this one could feel like a tough slog.

A gloriously intense and exotic historical saga - brutal, sensual, and opulent in equal measure. Not for the faint of heart, but unforgettable for those who want to be swept away by old-school epic storytelling.

About:

'Salammbo' by Gustave Flaubert is a historical novel set in ancient Carthage during the Third century BC. The story revolves around the brutal war between Carthage and its rebellious mercenaries, led by the Libyan Matho. Flaubert meticulously describes the exotic Carthaginian rituals, the diverse group of mercenaries, and the violent clashes between the two factions. The novel is filled with elaborate details of costumes, ceremonies, battles, and torturous punishments, creating a vivid and gory historical realism. The plot delves into themes of arrogance, pride, jealousy, and greed, portraying a political structure where party politics undermine the state's best interests.

Flaubert's writing style in 'Salammbo' is described as ornate, lavish, and exotic, filled with sensual and grotesque imagery. The novel is praised for its historical accuracy and the author's extensive research, including Flaubert's trip to Tunisia to gather information about Carthage. The narrative is likened to an Orientalist tragedy, showcasing Flaubert's deep knowledge of Carthaginian history and religion. Despite the graphic and violent content, the book is considered unique, compelling, and an epic tale of lust, cruelty, riches, ritual, and sensuality.

Characters:

Characters are often exaggerated in their traits, showcasing extremes of passion, manipulation, and ambition, which drive the plot forward.

Writing/Prose:

The writing is characterized by elaborate descriptions, a vivid blend of violence and sensuality, and a rich vocabulary that evokes the exoticism of the setting.

Plot/Storyline:

The story revolves around the conflicts between Carthaginian forces and mercenaries, highlighting the motivations and moral failings of its characters alongside historical events.

Setting:

Set in ancient Carthage, the novel immerses readers in a vividly detailed world rife with cultural richness and violence.

Pacing:

The pacing varies significantly, oscillating between action-packed sequences and extended descriptive passages that may leave readers disoriented.

It was at Megara, a suburb of Carthage, in the gardens of Hamilcar. The soldiers whom he had commanded in Sicily were having a great feast to celebrate the anniversary of the battle of Eryx, and as th...

Notes:

Salammbo is set in ancient Carthage during a mercenary war.

The story features a character named Spendius, a slave who manipulates mercenaries into rebellion.

The novel explores themes of pride, jealousy, and greed, rather than traditional tragic hubris.

Flaubert conducted extensive research, even traveling to Tunisia to gather details for the book.

The novel includes vivid descriptions of exotic rituals, costumes, and gruesome battles.

Salammbo became a commercial success shortly after its release, selling 2,000 copies in two days.

The book's graphic content contrasts with Flaubert's earlier work, Madame Bovary, which faced obscenity charges.

Flaubert's portrayal of Carthage as a character influenced later writers like Albert Camus.

The story involves stolen religious artifacts and features a priestess named Salammbo personally tied to the conflict.

Flaubert's rich and ornate writing style is often considered both a strength and a challenge for readers.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings for Salammbo include graphic violence, sexual content, cannibalism, and themes of child sacrifice.

Has Romance?

There is a medium level of romance in Salammbo, primarily depicted through the relationship between Salammbo and Matho, which is intertwined with themes of obsession and conflict.

From The Publisher:

A heady perfume of blood and rage across the stars featuring Philippe Druillet's legendary Lone Sloane.

In the third century BC, mercenaries employed by Carthage during the first Punic War rose against their employers, who repeatedly postponed their pay. Two barbarian clan chiefs, Matho and Narr'Havas, fell in love with the beautiful and ethereal Salammbo, daughter of Hamilcar of Carthage. A bloody conflict arose.

Based on the 19th century novel by Flaubert, Salammbo was reappropriated and recontextualised by Druillet in this masterwork. Transposing the ancient Punic Wars into his space fantasy universe, and splicing the identity of the novel's Mathô with his favorite character, Lone Sloane, Druillet works his intoxicatingly psychedelic magic on a literary classic, reinvigorating it from the inside out with his own transcendent storytelling.

1862

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345 pages

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About the Author:

Gustave Flaubert was born in Rouen in 1821, the son of a distinguished surgeon and a doctor's daughter. After three unhappy years of studying law in Paris, an epileptic attack ushered him into a life of writing. Madame Bovary won instant acclaim upon book publication in 1857, but Flaubert's frank display of adultery in bourgeois France saw him go on trial for immorality, only narrowly escaping conviction. Both Salammbo (1862) and The Sentimental Education (1869) were poorly received, and Flaubert's genius was not publicly recognized until Three Tales (1877). His reputation among his fellow writers, however, was more constant and those who admired him included Turgenev, George Sand, Victor Hugo and Zola. Flaubert's obsession with his art is legendary: he would work for days on a single page, obsessively attuning sentences, seeking always le mot juste in a quest for both beauty and precise observation. His style moved Edmund Wilson to say,'Flaubert, by a single phrase - a notation of some commonplace object - can convey all the poignance of human desire, the pathos of human defeat; his description of some homely scene will close with a dying fall that reminds one of great verse or music.' Flaubert died suddenly in May 1880, leaving his last work, Bouvard and Pécuchet, unfinished.

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Salammbo

Gustave Flaubert

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