Against the Grain is a fascinating exploration of the life of a wealthy eccentric who rejects societal norms and chooses to live a decadent and solitary existence. The protagonist, Des Esseintes, is a complex and enigmatic character who seeks to create his own world of beauty and pleasure, disconnected from the constraints of society.

Huysmans' prose is rich and vivid, immersing the reader in Des Esseintes' extravagant lifestyle and inner turmoil. The novel delves deep into themes of art, aesthetics, and the rejection of conventional morality, offering a thought-provoking commentary on the nature of human desire and the search for meaning in a world governed by materialism.

While some readers may find Des Esseintes' behavior and attitudes disturbing or morally questionable, the novel offers a unique perspective on the individual's quest for authenticity and self-expression. Against the Grain is a testament to the power of art and imagination to challenge the status quo and transcend the limitations of society.

Book Description:

“THE BOOK THAT DORIAN GRAY LOVED AND THAT INSPIRED OSCAR WILDE”. Such is the enticing epigraph of one early translation of Huysmans’ cult novel of 1884, which is also routinely called the Bible of Decadence. Accurate descriptions, both, of this bizarre masterpiece which has reverberated ever since through high and popular culture.

“Against Nature” (or in this version “Against The Grain”) explores to the furthest limit the life of the world-rejecting aesthete living a reclusive existence devoted entirely to artificial paradises of his own devising. This is no solemn tract, however: the book’s anti-hero Duc Jean Floressas Des Esseintes spectacularly fails to achieve his life’s work, as all his attempts to create worlds of perverse experience through synaesthesia and interior decoration prove ludicrously unsatisfying and injurious to health. An innocent tortoise also falls casualty to his theories, in the wonderful fifth chapter.

This is probably a novel best savoured one chapter at a time, and not only because John Howard’s clunky translation makes indigestible listening. Those who can skip whole chunks without guilt would do well to avoid chapters 4, 7, 12 and 14. Revel, however, in the wonders of 5, 8, 9 and 11. Encounter the jewel-encrusted chelonian, the butch lady acrobat, the nightmarish orchids that cause the hero to exclaim “All is Syphilis”…

Alas, this translation lacks a chapter, and two brief incidents are also suppressed on account of their sexual perversity. Enjoy what remains.