The Custom of the Country
By Edith Wharton; Linda Wagner-Martin (Introduction by); Linda Wagner-Martin (Notes by)
(Penguin Classics, Paperback, 9780143039709, 368pp.)
Publication Date: May 30, 2006
Other Editions of This Title: Paperback, Mass Market Paperback, Hardcover, Paperback, Compact Disc, Compact Disc, MP3 CD, Compact Disc, Compact Disc, MP3 CD, Hardcover, Paperback
Categories: Literary
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Considered by many to be her masterpiece, Edith Wharton's second full-length work is a scathing yet personal examination of the exploits and follies of the modern upper class. As she unfolds the story of Undine Spragg, from New York to Europe, Wharton affords us a detailed glimpse of what might be called the interior décor of this America and its nouveau riche fringes. Through a heroine who is as vain, spoiled, and selfish as she is irresistibly fascinating, and through a most intricate and satisfying plot that follows Undine's marriages and affairs, she conveys a vision of social behavior that is both supremely informed and supremely disenchanted.
- This new edition features a new introduction and explanatory notes and reset text
Novels of manners never get old. Any quick flip through one of today's celebrity magazines will prove that. From social climbers to spouse grabbers, century to century, nothing changes. Author Helen Simonson offers three novels for going beyond Jane Austen's gossip. More at NPR.org
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