Prime of Life, the (Twentieth Century Classics)

The second volume of Beauvoir's memoirs, covering the years from about 1929 to 1944. She tells of becoming a teacher, living independently, and building her partnership with Jean-Paul Sartre and a wide circle of friends. She writes of travel, early attempts at fiction, and the growing shadow of politics as Europe moves toward war. The final part describes life in occupied Paris. It is candid, observant and a valuable record of intellectual life in the period.