Project Gutenberg 2005-06-27 Public domain in the USA. 183 Balzac, Honoré de 1799 1850 Balzac, Honore de Saint-Aubin, Horace de De Balzac, Honoré Balzac, H. de (Honoré de) Wormeley, Katharine Prescott 1830 1908 Pierre Grassou Wikipedia page about this book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Grassou Produced by John Bickers, Dagny, and David Widger "Pierre Grassou" by Honoré de Balzac is a novel written in the 19th century, specifically during the period of the July Monarchy in France. This work is part of Balzac's expansive series known as "La Comédie Humaine," which offers a detailed depiction of French society. The narrative revolves around the life and struggles of Pierre Grassou, an unremarkable but kind-hearted painter who is more notable for his perseverance than his artistic talent. The story explores themes of ambition, mediocrity, and the often harsh realities faced by artists in an increasingly competitive world. The novel follows Pierre Grassou, a genre painter from Fougeres who, despite his lack of exceptional talent and originality, finds a way to thrive in the commercial world of art through sheer determination and a series of fortunate circumstances. As he begins painting portraits for the bourgeois Vervelle family, Grassou is thrust into their social circle and experiences a semblance of success and respectability. This relationship leads to his eventual marriage to their daughter, Virginie. However, the narrative reveals Grassou's internal conflict; despite his newfound status and stability, he remains aware that his artistic peers regard him as a mediocrity. Ultimately, the story provides a critical view of societal values that reward conformity over genuine talent, illustrating that success in art may not always align with artistic merit. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 69.6 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read. en French fiction -- Translations into English PQ Text Category: Novels Category: French Literature Category: Art 80838 2025-08-01T08:58:49.484332 text/html 76139 2013-04-04T15:44:24 text/html; charset=us-ascii 91315 2025-08-01T08:58:53.641297 application/epub+zip 90951 2025-08-01T08:58:51.158313 application/epub+zip 90950 2025-08-01T08:58:50.029353 application/epub+zip 168037 2025-08-01T08:58:55.350313 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 161085 2025-08-01T08:58:52.901351 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 128315 2022-09-01T10:00:59.185479 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 67539 2023-10-01T08:13:18.231984 text/plain 17048 2025-08-01T08:58:55.482303 application/rdf+xml 10851 2025-08-01T08:58:50.642331 image/jpeg 2859 2025-08-01T08:58:50.277338 image/jpeg 87607 2025-08-01T08:58:49.492330 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog fr.wikipedia en.wikipedia en.wikipedia