The Custom House of Desire: A Half-Century of Surrealist Stories

In this review the collection The Custom-House of Desire: A Half-Century of Surrealist Stories is presented as a focused anthology for readers who want a concentrated view of surrealist fiction across decades. Edited by J. H. Matthews, this volume compiles French-language pieces by notable figures such as Fernando Arrabal, Joyce Mansour, and Andre Pieyre de Mandiargues, and its single biggest reason to buy is the way it traces a consistent surrealist vision across diverse cultural voices and experimental forms, making it valuable to students, translators, and curious literary readers.

Key Features

• Curated anthology: Brings together stories written over roughly fifty years to illustrate shifts and continuities in surrealist practice, helping readers see development across time.
• French-language originals: Presents work in French, which preserves the authors original linguistic texture and is ideal for readers proficient in French or for translation study.
• Varied forms: Includes both structured tales and experimental narratives, offering a range of techniques that demonstrate surrealism's formal play and narrative invention.
• International voices: Features authors from multiple national and cultural backgrounds, showing the movement's global reach and thematic diversity.
• Thematic focus: Explores imagination and desire as organizing motifs, allowing readers to trace how those themes recur and transform across different writers.

Who It's For

The Custom-House of Desire suits readers with an interest in literary history, graduate students studying surrealism or 20th-century movements, and translators or teachers who want primary French texts showing the movement's variety. It also works for general readers open to challenging, nonrealistic narratives who appreciate compact anthologies that favor breadth over a single-author deep dive.

Those seeking a heavily annotated critical edition, an English translation, or a mass-market paperback with extensive commentary should look elsewhere; this volume emphasizes original French texts and curated selection rather than exhaustive scholarly apparatus or translation accessibility.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Collects important surrealist voices in one place, making cross-comparison simple and direct.
• Maintains original French-language texts, preserving stylistic nuance for readers and translators.
• Balances traditional story forms with experimental pieces, offering a broad sample of techniques.

Cons

• Limited appeal to non-French readers because the selections are presented in French without translations.
• Not a heavily annotated scholarly edition, so readers seeking extensive critical notes may find it light on apparatus.

Specifications

Our Verdict

The Custom-House of Desire is a compact, thoughtful anthology that rewards readers who want to sample the range of surrealist storytelling in the authors original language. It is good value for students, translators, and literary readers who prioritize primary texts and thematic breadth, though those needing translations or heavier critical apparatus should consider alternate editions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are the stories in English?
The collection presents stories in French, so English translations are not provided within this volume.

Does the book include critical notes or essays?
The emphasis is on the curated stories themselves rather than extensive scholarly annotation, so critical apparatus is limited.

Which authors are highlighted?
Notable contributors include Fernando Arrabal, Joyce Mansour, and Andre Pieyre de Mandiargues, among other surrealist writers.