I’ve seen this long, meticulously and painstakingly researched and exhaustively detailed biography of Jean Cocteau described as “monumental” and “a landmark” – and I totally agree. Originally published in France in 2003 it has now been translated into English (and what a task that must have been) – and now around 1,000 pages of densely written text of often convoluted and high-flown narrative is now available to a wider audience. This is not a book for the faint-hearted as it demands a certain amount of stamina to wade through it but the effort is richly rewarded. It’s a sweeping study of a complex artist who knew just about everyone who was anyone during his long life, which makes the biography not only fascinating in itself but also opens a window into a whole range of other artists’ lives, from Picasso to Nijinsky, Coco Chanel to Proust and many many others on the way. A very impressive book indeed.