Mot strömmen by Jorisk-Karl Huysmans
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The author himself thought this book would be a universal flop; au contraire, it wasn't. Instead, it has affected writers, poets, libertines and other people around the world, and continues to impress, outrage and mess with people's ideas on what a book should be like.
A man, Jean Des Esseintes, creates his own artistic creation through eccentric and bohemian ways. For example, he ponders the significance of colours and blends of those for ages, along with smells and sights.
The translation is wonderful, riddled with footnotes and illustrations that flesh out Esseintes' surroundings and references, and the book contains a splendid end note from the translator along with a list of names and explanations; without the annotations, I would not have graded this book as highly as I have. Apart from the namedroppings, this book is worth a lot.
P.s. Babyshambles actually did a song called "Au Rebours", influenced by this book. Here's the track (no official vid though):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sj8Pilv7Dq8