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Goodreads Choice Awards Finalists 2025
Jean Rhys

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Jean Rhys


Born
in Roseau or Grand Bay, British Leeward Islands (now Dominica)
August 24, 1890

Died
May 14, 1979

Genre
Fiction


Jean Rhys, CBE (born Ella Gwendolyn Rees Williams; 24 August 1890–14 May 1979) was a British novelist who was born and grew up in the Caribbean island of Dominica. From the age of 16, she mainly resided in England, where she was sent for her education. She is best known for her novel Wide Sargasso Sea (1966), written as a prequel to Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre.

She moved to England at the age of 16 years in 1906 and worked unsuccessfully as a chorus girl. In the 1920s, she relocated to Europe, travelled as a Bohemian artist, and took up residence sporadically in Paris. During this period, Rhys, familiar with modern art and literature, lived near poverty and acquired the alcoholism that persisted throughout the rest of her life. Her experie ...more

Combine Editions

Average rating: 3.64 · 135,078 ratings · 13,175 reviews · 67 distinct works • Similar authors
Wide Sargasso Sea
3.59 avg rating — 105,881 ratings — published 1966 — 6 editions
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Good Morning, Midnight
by
3.85 avg rating — 12,502 ratings — published 1939
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Voyage in the Dark
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3.78 avg rating — 6,038 ratings — published 1934 — 20 editions
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After Leaving Mr. Mackenzie
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3.90 avg rating — 2,799 ratings — published 1930 — 4 editions
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Quartet
3.69 avg rating — 2,743 ratings — published 1928 — 52 editions
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Smile Please: An Unfinished...
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3.97 avg rating — 1,037 ratings — published 1979 — 6 editions
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Till September Petronella
3.39 avg rating — 940 ratings — published 2018
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The Collected Short Stories
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4.03 avg rating — 585 ratings — published 1987 — 14 editions
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Sleep It Off Lady: Stories
4.10 avg rating — 487 ratings — published 1976 — 20 editions
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Tigers are Better-Looking: ...
3.93 avg rating — 394 ratings — published 1968 — 22 editions
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More books by Jean Rhys…
Quotes by Jean Rhys  (?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)

“I like shape very much. A novel has to have shape, and life doesn't have any. ”
― Jean Rhys, Smile Please: An Unfinished Autobiography
tags: life, novels
275 likes
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“You can pretend for a long time, but one day it all falls away and you are alone. We are alone in the most beautiful place in the world...”
― Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea
242 likes
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“Today I must be very careful, today I have left my armor at home.”
― Jean Rhys, Good Morning, Midnight
237 likes
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Polls

November 2016 New School Classic Poll

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, 343 pages, 1965
 
  38 votes, 14.6%

My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier, 352 pages, 1951
 
  35 votes, 13.5%

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, 192 pages, 1967
 
  28 votes, 10.8%

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, 211 pages, 1962
 
  28 votes, 10.8%

 
  27 votes, 10.4%

 
  23 votes, 8.8%

The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann, 706 pgs, 1924
 
  19 votes, 7.3%

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys , 171 pages, 1966
 
  18 votes, 6.9%

Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt, 432 pgs, 1996
 
  16 votes, 6.2%

Under the Volcano by Malcolm Lowry, 397 pgs, 1947
 
  15 votes, 5.8%

 
  13 votes, 5.0%

260 total votes
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