Set in Paris in the years before the First World War, this novel follows Léa, an elegant courtesan nearing fifty, and Chéri, a handsome young man many years her junior. Their affair has lasted for years and seems comfortable and settled. When his family arranges a marriage for him, both must face what the relationship has really meant. Colette observes the world of rich, idle Parisians with a sharp and tender eye. The book is a short, subtle study of love, vanity and the fear of growing old, and it is often counted among her finest works.