Madame Bovary (Penguin) – Gustave Flaubert

“She wanted something else…something better. Passion and perfection were out there somewhere. All she had to do was find them.”

Emma Bovary is a young woman who wants a life complete opposite to that which she lives, every day for her is a reminder of that perfection seeking her elsewhere. Her marriage to Charles Bovary, a kind but dull country doctor, falls short of her fantasies.

As Emma becomes increasingly depressed with her reality, she embarks on a series of adulterous affairs, seeking the fulfilment that eludes her. The elegant prose of the writing perfectly shows Emma’s inner turmoil and the stark contrast between her illusions and the harsh realities of life.

Will Emma be proven right in her quest? Or will she ultimately learn that satisfaction only comes from within, and our circumstances are ultimately nothing but perception.