The Last Days is Raymond Queneau's autobiographical novel of Parisian student life in the 1920s: Vincent Tuquedenne tries to reconcile his love for reading with the sterility of studying as he hopes to study his way out of the petite bourgeoisie to which he belongs. Vincent and his generation are contrasted with an older generation of retired teachers and petty crooks, and both generations come under the bemused gaze of the waiter Alfred, whose infallible method of predicting the future mocks prevailing scientific models. Similarly, Queneau's literary universe operates under its own laws, joining rigorous artistry with a warm evocation of the last days of a bygone world. "The most important thing to say about The Last Days is that it works. Erudition is seldom welcome at the gates of satire, but the late Raymond Queneau's autobiographical novel of Parisian student life in the 1920s is profound, complex and instantly likable. It is also very, very funny." (Octavio Roca, Washington Times 10-1-90) "A witty novel that is a witness both to Queneau's marvelous sense of humor and his capacity for self-examination." (Choice 2-91) "Dazzling in its wordplay." (Kirkus Reviews 8-1-90) "It is an artfully crafted literary mosaic of oppositions and similarities (of characters, descriptions, attitudes, and perceptions) that emphasize the literary quality of this work. The finality evoked in the title is rich in potential for interpretation, as is the work itself. The use of puns and neologisms, as well as other stylistic and rhetorical devices characteristic of Queneau's work, have come to be recognized as uniquely his." (Library Journal 8-90) "Beguiling. . . . Queneau's literary infractions . . . are not for the sake of novelty but for the sake of the novel." (Publishers Weekly 8-24-90)