‘Old Goriot’ is an elderly retired merchant living in a shabby Parisian boarding house with his two social-climbing daughters. His life intertwines with his fellow lodgers; Eugène de Rastignac, an impoverished law student from the country, and Vautrin, a mysterious and sinister conspirator.    The suffering, self-sacrificing Goriot yearns in vain for his daughters’ love. Rastignac, although appalled at first by the greed and corruption of Paris, soon joins forces with the array of schemers who surround him and sets his sights on conquering high society.   With its minute attention to detail and its vibrant portrayal of social upheaval in the sprawling, turbulent world of post-Napoleonic Paris, Old Goriot (Le Père Goriot) has earned its place as Balzac’s best-loved and most important novel.   Published by Penguin, 1951. Translated by Marion Ayton Crawford. “Miss Crawford has managed to combine fidelity to the original with a due regard for English ears, and has provided a helpful and informative introduction for readers coming to this novel for the first time.” – The Times Literary Supplement. Hardback in very good condition. A beautiful design which confirms that you are holding a 1951 production in your hand.