The Innocent Libertine

In this novel of two parts ? originally two separate novellas ? we see the heroine Minne at two stages in her life. The cherished teenager, only child of a devoted mother, has a secret life: she wishes to belong to one of the street gangs who roam the outer boulevards of Paris. Her desire for excitement, power and love, drives the innocent into a dangerous adventure. Years later, as a married woman, she remains dissatisfied. She takes lovers, none of whom can make her a 'whole woman'. Only when her marital crisis reaches an extreme pitch does she find the answer, in an unexpected place. The Innocent Libertine was among the earliest works to be published by Colette under her own name. AUTHOR: Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette was born in rural Burgundy in 1873. At twenty, she married Henry Gauthier-Villars, known as ?Willy?, a critic, journalist and self-promoting man of letters, fourteen years older than herself. Soon immersed in his Parisian literary world, she wrote for him the sensational and highly successful Claudine series of novels. But the pair separated in 1906 and were divorced in 1910. She subsequently married twice more. Her writing career continued in spite of much turmoil, including spells as a dancer, mime artist and actor. Among her most renowned works are La vagabonde (1910), Cheri (1920), Le ble en herbe (1923), La naissance du jour (1928) and Gigi (1944).