Auguste Dezalay Ordre des livres (chronologique)

L'Assommoir raconte la grandeur puis la décadence de Gervaise Macquart, blanchisseuse dans le quartier de la Goutte-d'Or à Paris.

French realism's most beguiling femme fatale, Nana crawled from the gutter to ascend the heights of Parisian society, devouring men and squandering fortunes along the way. Her corruption reflects the degenerate state of the Second Empire and her story -- a classic of French literature -- is among the first modern novels.