Collected Stories 1911-1937 - Hardcover

Wharton, Edith

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1883011949 ISBN 13: 9781883011949

Publisher: Library of America, 2001

Synopsis

Library of America presents the second volume in a landmark two-volume collector's edition of the incomparable stories of an American master.

Born into an upper-class New York family, Edith Wharton broke with convention and became a professional writer, earning an enduring place as the grande dame of American letters. This Library of America collection (along with its companion volume, Collected Stories: 1891–1910) presents the finest of Wharton's achievement in short fiction, drawn from the more than eighty stories she published over the course of her career. 

In this volume, Wharton’s humor is abundantly evident in sly and subtle stories like “Xingu” (in which a ladies’ reading group is led to express its enthusiasm for an occult philosophy) and “Charm Incorporated” (about a mild-mannered Wall Street executive overwhelmed by his émigré wife’s needy but wonderful relatives). As always, Wharton’s is a provocative voice on the subject of sexuality and women’s roles. In “The Day of the Funeral,” “Joy in the House,” and “Atrophy,” love and desire confront the demands of polite society; in “Roman Fever,” a formal tour de force, two middle-aged women on holiday with their modern daughters revisit the fierce competitiveness of their own youth.

Of particular interest are Wharton’s stories of the uncanny and the supernatural, like the grisly “A Bottle of Perrier,” set in the North African desert, and the chilling “All Souls’,” written just before her death. An unacknowledged master of American horror fiction, Wharton’s lucid prose makes all the more powerful her exploration of the irrational forces underlying ordinary life.

Also included in this edition are a chronology of Wharton’s life, explanatory notes, and an essay on the texts.

LIBRARY OF AMERICA is an independent nonprofit cultural organization founded in 1979 to preserve our nation’s literary heritage by publishing, and keeping permanently in print, America’s best and most significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than 300 volumes to date, authoritative editions that average 1,000 pages in length, feature cloth covers, sewn bindings, and ribbon markers, and are printed on premium acid-free paper that will last for centuries.

About this title

About the Author

Edith Wharton (1862-1937) is a central figure in American literature, a masterful chronicler of her age and prolific writer in many modes. Her major works include The House of Mirth (1905), Ethan Frome (1911), The Custom of the Country (1913) and The Age of Innocence (1920), for which she received the Pulitzer Prize, the first awarded to a woman.

Maureen Howard, the editor of this volume, is the author of numerous novels, including Grace Abounding, Expensive Habits, and Natural History, all of which were nominated for the PEN/Faulkner Award. She has taught at a number of American universities, including Columbia, Princeton, Amherst, and Yale, and was awarded the Academy Award in Literature by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. 

Reviews

Arguably our greatest novelist of manners, Wharton (The House of Mirth) evoked the glittering heights and the decadent lows of New York society at the turn of the 20th century. However, it was with her short stories and her novellas that the author honed her technique and her sharp social satire. These two volumes offer a glimpse into Wharton's development as a writer and provide perfect companions to the Library of America's Edith Wharton: Novels (1986) and Edith Wharton: Novellas and Other Writings (1989). Volume 1 opens with her first published story, "Mrs. Manstey's View," and contains the novellas "The Touchstone" and "Sanctuary." These early stories include Wharton's characteristic social satire and her keen insights into sexual relationships. Volume 2 features the novellas "Roman Fever" and "Bunner Sisters," as well as several of her stories about World War I, including "The Marne" and "Writing a War Story." These stories capture Wharton's mastery at characterization and the maturity of her reflections on society. Novelist Howard (Grace Abounding) selected the contents and wrote the notes for each volume. These elegant editions provide a convenient collection of Wharton's stories. An essential purchase. Henry L. Carrigan Jr., Lancaster, PA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Library of America
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1883011949
• ISBN 13: 9781883011949
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 848
• Editor: Howard Maureen