Take a photo of a barcode or cover
caia_in_wonderland 's review for:
The House of Mirth
by Edith Wharton
4.5⭐️
First it is important to set aside (at least it was for me) any compulsion to criticise these people brought up with so much money they “never” have to struggle for material things and survival, and that they were conditioned by the skin color and upbringing in a conservative Golden Age NY high society that was, as it is presented, so prejudiced of anything different and below, any enticing oddity only commented by its level of entertainment but never to be nothing more.
Lily Bart is a creature born to be seen, objectified, to use her beauty and mind to conquer all, new and old money, and to be above all, the smartest, the most beautiful, but the truth is that there is more to her heart than vanity and superficiality, and therefore at 29, when the tale starts, she has yet to settle, somehow there is always something inside her that makes her thwart it. However, facing the prospective of dwindling beauty, which will eventually come, and her many debts accrued trying to maintain the same lifestyle as the actually rich that have taken her under their wing to show off at their parties as a trophy of beauty and talent, she knows she has to close the deal and marry.
Still, she will struggle. And, when love unbeknownst to her appears in the shape of a man who challenges her but can never give her the life she is used to, she will spiral, bouncing between contradicting decisions, and its repercussions.
I don’t want to give much away, but I can say that like with The Age of Innocence, this is a melancholic tale, filled with dichotomic thoughts about wealth and morals, about the solitude and repression of womanhood and its prospects.
I loved this one, I cried and suffered with Lily, and I found it superior to the author’s most famous work.
If you want to try Edith Wharton I would suggest this one to start with.
First it is important to set aside (at least it was for me) any compulsion to criticise these people brought up with so much money they “never” have to struggle for material things and survival, and that they were conditioned by the skin color and upbringing in a conservative Golden Age NY high society that was, as it is presented, so prejudiced of anything different and below, any enticing oddity only commented by its level of entertainment but never to be nothing more.
Lily Bart is a creature born to be seen, objectified, to use her beauty and mind to conquer all, new and old money, and to be above all, the smartest, the most beautiful, but the truth is that there is more to her heart than vanity and superficiality, and therefore at 29, when the tale starts, she has yet to settle, somehow there is always something inside her that makes her thwart it. However, facing the prospective of dwindling beauty, which will eventually come, and her many debts accrued trying to maintain the same lifestyle as the actually rich that have taken her under their wing to show off at their parties as a trophy of beauty and talent, she knows she has to close the deal and marry.
Still, she will struggle. And, when love unbeknownst to her appears in the shape of a man who challenges her but can never give her the life she is used to, she will spiral, bouncing between contradicting decisions, and its repercussions.
I don’t want to give much away, but I can say that like with The Age of Innocence, this is a melancholic tale, filled with dichotomic thoughts about wealth and morals, about the solitude and repression of womanhood and its prospects.
I loved this one, I cried and suffered with Lily, and I found it superior to the author’s most famous work.
If you want to try Edith Wharton I would suggest this one to start with.