236 - RESTIF DE LA BRETONNE, Nicolas-Edme. *La Paysane pervertie, or The Dangers of the City*.

RESTIF DE LA BRETONNE, Nicolas-Edme. *La Paysane pervertie, or The Dangers of the City*. The Hague, and available in Paris from the Duchesne Widow, 1786. In-12 (17 x 10 cm), green half-vellum, red leather title label on the spine. Contemporary binding. 4 vols.: IV-111 [actually 211] pp. - 203 pp. - 203 pp. - 223 pp. Slight scuffing on the bindings. Yellowed pages. A rare counterfeit edition of *La Paysane pervertie*, the sequel and female counterpart—written in just 30 days—to *Le Paysan perverti* (published in 1775). It is divided into 8 parts, each beginning with an elaborate header, and each letter is separated by a double border adorned with a plant motif winding around it. The work contains the Publisher’s Note to the Reader, the publisher’s preface, and an overview of the four volumes. The story recounts the tragic fate of Ursule, a young country girl corrupted by the pitfalls and debauchery of Parisian life. “*La Paysane* fleshes out the characters who were only sketched in *Le Paysan*: Fanchon, Pierre, and especially Gaudet d’Arras are perfectly developed there [...] These two works, which are really one and the same, are perhaps the most valuable work to have been published since the beginning of the century.” (Rétif de la Bretonne, *Mes ouvrages*, pp. 34–35). A fine copy bound in its original binding, complete with all eight parts in four volumes.