The startling and groundbreaking novel that inspired Luis Bu uel s film by the same name is finally available once more. In a world that blurs the lines between feminism and female sexuality, Belle de Jour remains as vital and controversial today as it was in its 1960 debut.

Severine Serizy is a wealthy and beautiful Parisian housewife. She loves her husband, but she cannot share physical intimacy with him, and her vivid sadomasochistic fantasies drive her to seek employment at a brothel. By day, she enacts her customers' wildest fantasies under the pseudonym 'Belle de Jour'; in the evenings, she returns home to her chaste marriage and oblivious husband. Famous for its unflinching eroticism, the Joseph Kessel novel continues to offer an eye-opening glance into a unique female psyche.