content: It is unfortunate that Guy De M is known in the USA for his short stories. They are well-written and were ground-breaking 150 years ago, but they do not age well. This translation is particularly poor and the Dover edition is so cheap and flimsy that the only thing good you can say about it is that it's cheap. And cheap isn't always the best value. For great French short fiction, try Emile Zola. De M's novels are great and age much better than this stuff. Historically they're interesting but have an O. Henry quality that doesn't work much anymore.