In Pursuit of Love: The Search for Victor Hugo's Daughter

Adèle Hugo's tragic life has been shrouded in mystery, but Mark Bostridge has been following her story for over 20 years. In Pursuit of Love is a moving book about the pain of loving too much and of parents loving too little, and the ways in which we are haunted by the dead. It is part memoir and part travelogue, and an invigorating new approach to the writing of biography.

Format: Hardback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 06 June 2024
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Adèle Hugo's daring quest for unrequited love and the writer who pursued her over 150 years later is explored in this innovative biographical work. In 1863, the daughter of Victor Hugo, a renowned writer, leaves her family's home on the Channel Islands to pursue a young British soldier she is infatuated with. After a decade-long pursuit, Adèle is brought back to Paris by a compassionate former slave woman. She is admitted to an asylum, where she eventually dies, leaving behind a substantial inheritance from her father's books. This tragic love story has inspired numerous works of literature, music, and film, including a famous film by François Truffaut. However, many aspects of Adèle Hugo's life remain shrouded in mystery, particularly the true identity of the soldier who played a significant role in her downfall. Mark Bostridge, fascinated by Adèle's story since his twenties, embarks on a journey to uncover the truth. Traveling halfway across the world, he acts as a sleuth, tracing the descendants of the soldier she loved. Through his quest, Bostridge discovers parallels between Adèle's life and his own, exploring themes of love, loss, and the enduring power of storytelling. The result is a poignant and introspective book that delves into the complexities of human emotions and the enduring fascination with other people's lives.

Weight: 490g
Dimension: 241 x 162 x 30 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781399416023