Chronicles an impoverished girl's descent into tragedy as she attempts to fit in with 19th century NYC high society. One of my favorite books from this era! Read if you're into Fitzgerald or Tolstoy.
Jun 13, 2024
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Society’s punitive cruelties are meted out by women in Jacques Doucet gowns and condemnation is served over terrapin with a Roman Punch chaser, but don’t let Edith Wharton’s antique references distract from what is really being offered here: a soul-crushing buffet of confessional gossip more contemporary in texture than one might think. Masterpieces like The Age of Innocence and The House of Mirth often get shunted over to the retirement village section of the bookstore (those shitty rotating racks of classics that are tucked discreetly in a corner so they don’t offend culture’s youthful sensibilities), but if you can’t find them there, don’t be afraid to march right up to the counter and ask in your loudest and most self-righteous voice what kind of establishment doesn’t carry Edith Wharton. Read The Custom of The Country for Edith’s eviscerating portrait of Gilded Age venality and follow it up with a couple of her ghost stories.
Feb 28, 2023
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Mother!!!!! I’ve orbited Edith for years (trusted friends love her work and I’ve been too lazy to read) but never committed. A friend sent me her short story, "Roman Fever" this weekend and I finally acquiesced because it was only 11 pages. The TWIST! I was genuinely left mouth agape. She nails interpersonal relationships and the inner workings of the female mind with precision. I’m reading House of Mirth now and having a grand ole time.
Jan 23, 2024
SUCH a wild ride, we’ve got an affair, a celeb psychic medium, an inter-dimensional cloud of ancestral grief, a failing marriage (and a pregnancy), the Russian Revolution, generational trauma, Soviet orphanages, and at least three questionable women —I feel like this is a superb book for the Moshfegh, batuman, emma cline, Mona Awad crowds
Apr 30, 2024
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And begin hearing parts of it that you hadn't previously noticed.
Feb 18, 2025
1d ago
Feels so magical stepping into one of these. Possible cure for seasonal depression.
Jan 14, 2025