A Perilous Advantage: The Best of Natalie Clifford Barney

Finally, the writing of one of the century’s most notorious lesbians is available in English. Though best known for hosting the avant garde of Paris for thirty years, Colette, Renee Vivien, Marcel Proust and Gertrude Stein, to mention a few, she was also a writer who challenged the male-dominated literary establishment both in the content and the form of her work. Now we can discover her views on the people, places and events of that exciting and stimulating era for ourselves. Here is a spirited translation of Barney’s thought-provoking work by one of Britain’s most interesting writers.