Published in 2006 (first published 1905)
351 pages
Edith Wharton (1862–1937), the author of such classics as The Age of Innocence, The House of Mirth, and The Custom of the Country, is best known for her “society novels,” in which she analyzed the changing scene of fashionable American life in contrast to that of Old Europe.
What is this book about?
First published in 1905, The House of Mirth shocked the New York society it so deftly chronicles, portraying the moral, social and economic restraints on a woman who dared to claim the privileges of marriage without assuming the responsibilities.
Lily Bart, beautiful, witty and sophisticated, is accepted by ‘old money’ and courted by the growing tribe of nouveaux riches. But as she nears thirty, her foothold becomes precarious; a poor girl with expensive tastes, she needs a husband to preserve her social standing, and to maintain her in the luxury she has come to expect. Whilst many have sought her, something – fastidiousness or integrity- prevents her from making a ‘suitable’ match.
