Ruined and determined to die, young Raphaël de Valentin walks into an antique shop, where the dealer offers him an animal skin covered in signs. This talisman grants every wish of its owner, but it shrinks with each wish, and its owner's life grows shorter with it. Rich overnight, Raphaël must choose between living long and living out his desires.
Balzac blends the supernatural with a portrait of the Paris of his day. The novel left an expression still used in France: to shrink “like the peau de chagrin”.
With the translation always in front of you, you can read this great novel in the language you are learning.
