Micromegas and Other Short Fictions

Something between a tale and a polemic, these "fables of reason" are feats of narrative compression and contain much of Voltaire's best and funniest writing. From ribald tales of adultery to conversations between cosmic travellers, the stories in this collection pose moral, philosophical and social questions. Reader and protagonist alike find their assumptions challenged as Voltaire mingles rationality and fantasy.

Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire (1694-1778) was the universal genius of the Enlightenment. In his early career he was briefly committed to the Bastille for his satires and later exiled to England. His most characteristic works are philosophical tales, of which Candide (1759) is the most famous. Theo Cuffe (translator) is also the translator of Penguin Classics' forthcoming edition of Candide. Haydn Mason (introduction and notes) is Professor of French at Bristol University.