Readers are busy. Too busy, even, to attack Proust's famed seven-volume magnum opus, "The Remembrance of Things Past," a work peopled with an elbow-throwing crowd of more than 400 characters. Who can blame them, really? To the rescue comes passionate Proust aficionado Patrick Alexander, who has compiled a breezy guide sure to make the protean writer's work far more accessible for those lacking a Ph.D. in French literature.

At first, delving into "Marcel Proust's Search for Lost Time: A Reader's Guide to 'The Remembrance of Things Past'" feels a bit like cheating. Soon, though, it's obvious that Alexander's book is far from a glorified version of Cliffs Notes; it is generous with meaningful quotes and the kind of gossipy back-story that only makes readers more eager (and frankly, far more likely) to tackle the real thing. On the other hand, mere Proust dabblers will be prepared to dish on Marcel, Albertine and Swann with great authority at the next dinner party they attend with Francophile friends.

Instead of being a substitute for the 3,000-page collected work, this book is ideal as an easy-to-thumb-through accompaniment, a cookie to nibble on between heavy Proust chapters. Years of careful research prove this author a capable, Virgil-like guide for readers who realize there is way more to Proust than just that maddening madeleine.

ANDREA HOAG