Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was a French philosopher and widely recognised as one of the most original and influential thinkers of the 20th Century.

"One of the important things about the Roussel book, however, is that it shows that approach to literature in full flight. And reading it is a pleasure, but a pleasure that is not unmixed with pain. Foucault's own enjoyment, not only of the texts of Roussel, but of the process of producing his analyses of those texts, is contagious. And if that makes us go back and read some of Roussel's work, then the book has served an important function... given Foucault's own fondness for subjugated knowledges and forgotten histories, we would be well justified in uncovering this secret love of an anguished and obsessive young philosopher." -Timothy O'Leary, Foucault Studies, February 2009