The Confession of a False Soul

Ilarie Voronca

Translated by Sue Boswell

Originally published in 1942, and here presented for the first time in English, expertly translated from the French by Sue Boswell, The Confession of a False Soul is one of avant-garde Romanian author Ilarie Voronca’s most brilliant works of fiction. Telling the story of a young man who has a specialist replace his damaged soul with that of a soldier who has died in the war, this short surreal novel, at once haunting and beautiful, carries with it a powerful charm normally restricted to dreams. Written in a spare narrative style rich in poetic force and symbolism, The Confession of a False Soul transports the reader to a place between reality and illusion where love alone might be the only thing that is real.

About the Author
“Ilarie Voronca” was the pen name of Eduard Marcus (1903-1946), one of the greatest avant-garde writers of his time. A Jewish Romanian by birth, he published numerous texts in his home country before permanently establishing himself in France, where he produced volumes of poetry and prose in the French language, including L’Apprenti fantôme et Cinq poèmes de septembre (1938), La Clé des réalités (1944), and Souvenir de la planète Terre (1945).

About the Translator
Sue Boswell studied French Language and Literature at UCL and for a time taught French at Goldsmiths University of London. She then moved into university administration, specialising in university external relations and communications. Later she became a translator for the Wiener Holocaust Library. Her translations include The Assassins and other Stories by Marcel Schwob and The Last Train by Arnaud Rykner (both Snuggly Books 2020). Sue lives with her husband, Colin Boswell, in London and Ouveillan, a village near Narbonne in the Languedoc.

Paperback, 98 pages
Release date, May 18, 2021
ISBN-13: 978-1-64525-066-1
Price: US$13.00