James Branch Cabell 4 hr 5 min read

In the land of Poictesme, young Florian de Puysange dreams of a sleeping princess of perfect beauty, and, grown, will move heaven and hell to reach the high place where she lies, whatever the cost.

James Branch Cabell's 1923 novel is an elegant, ironic fantasy in his celebrated Poictesme cycle. Witty, allusive, sophisticated. Read it for a sardonic Cabell masterwork, a comedy of disenchantment where the pursuit of an idealized dream, at any price, leads to a darkly funny reckoning with what one truly desires.

In its time

Published in 1923, during the 1920s, the pulp era proper.

Reading it

4 hr 5 min read (a novel-length work, settle in).

Illustrated by

Frank Cheyne Papé