Memoirs of a French Courtesan

"When I wrote these memoirs in 1852, I was ignorant of the future awaiting me; who could have known? It was not my willful brazenness that dictated I write these memoirs; it was not for provocation or moral outrage, as some of those who were quick to take offense said. Before you sentence the guilty, at least listen through to the end of the story."

The four volumes of the infamous courtesan and Hippodrome performer, Memoires de Celeste Mogador, were published to scandalous acclaim in Paris in 1858. At the urging of her lawyer, Mogador wrote about her troubled childhood, her ascent to the heights of the glamorous Parisian courtesan society, her transition to respectable life, and falling in love with a nobleman.

In this new English translation, Memoirs of a French Courtesan Volume 1: Rebellion introduces the young Celeste as she and her mother flee Paris to escape Celeste's abusive stepfather. There they settle into a quiet, anonymous life, but he follows them-and participates in the riots that envelop Lyon. Soon enough, mother and daughter are free to return to Paris, where Celeste's mother again falls in love with a less-than-perfect man. Celeste escapes him, only to fall in with a kind courtesan-and find herself in prison. But having seen the silks and velvets and jewels the courtesans wear, Celeste dreams of nothing more than emancipating herself from her mother and living that glamorous life as soon as she turns sixteen.