It used to be said that ‘the life and works of André Malraux suggest a man restricted to the heights of experience.’ It was also said, before the formulation became a cliché applied to pop stars, that ‘his life, not his writings, is his chef d’oeuvre’. Although Curtis Cate quotes neither of these opinions, he is aware of the fabulous nature of Malraux’s life.Malraux was the most complete example of the engagé French intellectual. He did not have Camus’ laconic cool, nor did he write a book as good as L’Etranger; he was not an intellectual leader of the same weight as Sartre. His work, however, makes an impressive body and includes two