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Els eduardians
Amb només dinou anys, en Sebastian és conscient que heretarà d’aquí a no gaire tant la mansió de Chevron, amb totes les finques que l’envolten, com el títol de duc. Ell i la seva germana Viola han rebut la formació adequada per assumir aquesta responsabilitat i se senten dipositaris d’una llarga tradició familiar, però alhora són només dos adolescents que detesten la hipocresia i les pretensions de l’alta aristocràcia que els envolta i que s’esforça a amagar les seves febleses sota el glamur de l’elegància i la subtilesa de les bones maneres.
En el transcurs d’una luxosa recepció organitzada per la seva mare, en Sebastian coneix dues persones que tindran una gran influència en el seu futur: Lady Roehampton, que l’iniciarà en les arts de la seducció, i l’explorador i aventurer Leonard Anquetil, que li farà replantejar-se el destí que té traçat davant seu, perquè, al capdavall, encara hauria de ser a temps d’agafar les regnes de la seva vida i orientar-la cap on li plagui.
Vita Sackville-West, que es va trobar amb el mateix dilema que el protagonista, va saber convertir aquesta novel·la d’aprenentatge, publicada el 1930 a Hogarth Press (l’editorial dels Woolf), en un retrat vivíssim de la societat de començament del segle XX, en què recull molts dels records de la seva joventut a la casa familiar.
En el transcurs d’una luxosa recepció organitzada per la seva mare, en Sebastian coneix dues persones que tindran una gran influència en el seu futur: Lady Roehampton, que l’iniciarà en les arts de la seducció, i l’explorador i aventurer Leonard Anquetil, que li farà replantejar-se el destí que té traçat davant seu, perquè, al capdavall, encara hauria de ser a temps d’agafar les regnes de la seva vida i orientar-la cap on li plagui.
Vita Sackville-West, que es va trobar amb el mateix dilema que el protagonista, va saber convertir aquesta novel·la d’aprenentatge, publicada el 1930 a Hogarth Press (l’editorial dels Woolf), en un retrat vivíssim de la societat de començament del segle XX, en què recull molts dels records de la seva joventut a la casa familiar.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1930
117 people are currently reading
5649 people want to read
About the author
Vita Sackville-West
130 books477 followersNovels of British writer Victoria Mary Sackville-West, known as Vita, include
The Edwardians
(1930) and
All Passion Spent
(1931).
This prolific English author, poet, and memoirist in the early 20th century lived not so privately.
While married to the diplomat Harold Nicolson, she conducted a series of scandalous amorous liaisons with many women, including the brilliant Virginia Woolf. They had an open marriage. Both Sackville-West and her husband had same-sex relationships. Her exuberant aristocratic life was one of inordinate privilege and way ahead of her time. She frequently traveled to Europe in the company of one or the other of her lovers and often dressed as a man to be able to gain access to places where only the couples could go. Gardening, like writing, was a passion Vita cherished with the certainty of a vocation: she wrote books on the topic and constructed the gardens of the castle of Sissinghurst, one of England's most beautiful gardens at her home.
She published her first book Poems of East and West in 1917. She followed this with a novel, Heritage, in 1919. A second novel, The Heir (1922), dealt with her feelings about her family. Her next book, Knole and the Sackvilles (1922), covered her family history. The Edwardians (1930) and All Passion Spent (1931) are perhaps her best known novels today. In the latter, the elderly Lady Slane courageously embraces a long suppressed sense of freedom and whimsy after a lifetime of convention. In 1948 she was appointed a Companion of Honour for her services to literature. She continued to develop her garden at Sissinghurst Castle and for many years wrote a weekly gardening column for The Observer. In 1955 she was awarded the gold Veitch medal of the Royal Horticultural Society. In her last decade she published a further biography, Daughter of France (1959) and a final novel, No Signposts in the Sea (1961).
She died of cancer on June 2, 1962.
This prolific English author, poet, and memoirist in the early 20th century lived not so privately.
While married to the diplomat Harold Nicolson, she conducted a series of scandalous amorous liaisons with many women, including the brilliant Virginia Woolf. They had an open marriage. Both Sackville-West and her husband had same-sex relationships. Her exuberant aristocratic life was one of inordinate privilege and way ahead of her time. She frequently traveled to Europe in the company of one or the other of her lovers and often dressed as a man to be able to gain access to places where only the couples could go. Gardening, like writing, was a passion Vita cherished with the certainty of a vocation: she wrote books on the topic and constructed the gardens of the castle of Sissinghurst, one of England's most beautiful gardens at her home.
She published her first book Poems of East and West in 1917. She followed this with a novel, Heritage, in 1919. A second novel, The Heir (1922), dealt with her feelings about her family. Her next book, Knole and the Sackvilles (1922), covered her family history. The Edwardians (1930) and All Passion Spent (1931) are perhaps her best known novels today. In the latter, the elderly Lady Slane courageously embraces a long suppressed sense of freedom and whimsy after a lifetime of convention. In 1948 she was appointed a Companion of Honour for her services to literature. She continued to develop her garden at Sissinghurst Castle and for many years wrote a weekly gardening column for The Observer. In 1955 she was awarded the gold Veitch medal of the Royal Horticultural Society. In her last decade she published a further biography, Daughter of France (1959) and a final novel, No Signposts in the Sea (1961).
She died of cancer on June 2, 1962.
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October 28, 2019
“It is no good my telling you. One never believes other people's experiences and one is only very gradually convinced by one's own.”
Sebastian is nineteen years old, dashingly handsome, and the heir to a vast and beautiful country estate called Chevron. Edward the Caresser, eldest son of Victoria, is on the throne of England. It is 1905, and the grim days of World War One are still unrealized. As a member of the Upper Classes and a regular at any gala event in Edwardian high society, Sebastian is the perfect age in the perfect era.
His role in life has been preordained.
Sebastian takes as his lover a friend of his mother, the Lady Sylvia Roehampton. She is, despite her age, still considered the most beautiful jewel in English society. ”Sebastian was intensely aware of her quality as she strolled beside him; her quality of a beautiful woman exquisitely finished, with a perfect grasp on life, untroubled, shrewd, mature, secret, betraying her real self to none.”To be seen with the most dashing young man in London enhances her already glittering reputation, and for him to be seen with Sylvia only makes the most eligible bachelor more entrancing. You would think that if anyone would be appalled at this spectacle it would be his mother Lucy, but she takes a very practical view of the matter. ”She was quite content that Sebastian should become tanned in the rays of Sylvia’s Indian summer.”
She expects Sylvia to keep her head and advance the bedsheet knowledge of her son and not do something as insane as to fall in love with him. He could fall in love with her, but she could not do the same. The balances are teetering in the relationship, but the final blow to this “suitable” arrangement comes from Lord Roehampton, who doesn’t find it...well... suitable at all.
It turns into a sticky wicket.
Sebastian meets a man at one of his mother’s parties by the name of Leonard Anquetil, who is invited as a peculiar person of personal accomplishment. He is a famous explorer who has conquered jungles and lived to tell about it. ”There was no mistaking that strange countenance, pitted with the blue gunpowder, scarred by the sword-cut; a countenance sallow and sarcastic between the two black puffs of hair.” Anquetil has no title or inherited money. He is a self-made man in the best possible fashion. Sebastian had never met anyone like him.
Anquetil is the temptation. He is the father figure who could make a better man of Sebastian, but he would have to give up his life at Chevron to go adventuring with Anquetil. Despite his superficial existence, I can’t help liking Sebastian because of his love for the family estate. It is real. He doesn’t weigh it to see what it is worth. He looks upon the beauty and the people with true love and affection. This is certainly Vita Sackville-West peering through her character’s eyes for a moment. She never inherited her family estate at Knole House, and for the rest of her life she pined for the person she was when she lived there.
Portrait of Vita Sackville-West by William Strang.
Sebastian knows he will never find another to match Sylvia, so he tries romancing a series of very different women. There is Theresa, the Doctor’s wife, whom he is sure he can woo with the glamor of his life that she admits to be so enamored with, but despite his most charming efforts, she proves obstinate in maintaining her faithfulness to her husband. There is a pretty estate girl who is ushered off stage by his mother once things start to look serious. He finds a bohemian girl by the name of Phil ,who sees the world and her place in it with clearer eyes than Sebastian. ”With her black hair cut square; her red, generous mouth; her thick white throat; and brilliant colours; especially when she crouched gipsy-like, over her guitar.”
He asks her if she would marry him. She laughs at his naivete. As crazy as it seems to even consider marrying a coarse girl several class rungs below him, he is just trying desperately to escape his predestination. He can’t help but ask himself, isn’t there more than this?
And then Anquetil reappears.
So who is this Vita Sackville-West?
Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West in 1933.
Vita Sackville-West had an open marriage with the writer and politician Harold Nicolson. They were both bi-sexual and had numerous affairs during their marriage. The most famous of these affairs was between Vita and Virginia Woolf. Woolf wrote the book Orlando and based the main character on Vita. This book was what Vita’s son Nigel called ”The longest and most charming love letter in the history of literature.”
This book, The Edwardians, came out in 1930 and was published by the Woolf owned Hogarth Press. It was a smashing success. The world was mired in a recession, and the book hearkened back to better days. It was selling 800 copies a day and by the end of six months had sold over 20,000 copies. The Edwardian age was long passed, and people were looking back at that last extravagant age as a time that would never come again. It might seem odd that the lower classes were so fascinated with the upper classes during a time of economic struggle, but if we don’t know about such people and the lives they lead, how can we dream?
Part of the restored gardens at Sissinghurst.
Sackville-West never did recover her family estate, but she did buy the moldering remains of Sissinghurst, an estate that used to belong to another ancestor long before. The money from the success of this book helped to restore it to better than its former glory.
I have recently read a biography of Edward the VII called The Heir Apparent: A Life of Edward VII, the Playboy Prince so there was certainly some added enjoyment for me when Edward, known as Bertie, would be seen loitering at one of these high society events. The people reading this book in 1930 would have recognized many of the thinly disguised, real life people used as characters in this novel. In the front of the book, Sackville-West states: ”No character in this book is wholly fictitious.”
Oh Vita, you naughty, naughty girl.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at: https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
Sebastian is nineteen years old, dashingly handsome, and the heir to a vast and beautiful country estate called Chevron. Edward the Caresser, eldest son of Victoria, is on the throne of England. It is 1905, and the grim days of World War One are still unrealized. As a member of the Upper Classes and a regular at any gala event in Edwardian high society, Sebastian is the perfect age in the perfect era.
His role in life has been preordained.
Sebastian takes as his lover a friend of his mother, the Lady Sylvia Roehampton. She is, despite her age, still considered the most beautiful jewel in English society. ”Sebastian was intensely aware of her quality as she strolled beside him; her quality of a beautiful woman exquisitely finished, with a perfect grasp on life, untroubled, shrewd, mature, secret, betraying her real self to none.”To be seen with the most dashing young man in London enhances her already glittering reputation, and for him to be seen with Sylvia only makes the most eligible bachelor more entrancing. You would think that if anyone would be appalled at this spectacle it would be his mother Lucy, but she takes a very practical view of the matter. ”She was quite content that Sebastian should become tanned in the rays of Sylvia’s Indian summer.”
She expects Sylvia to keep her head and advance the bedsheet knowledge of her son and not do something as insane as to fall in love with him. He could fall in love with her, but she could not do the same. The balances are teetering in the relationship, but the final blow to this “suitable” arrangement comes from Lord Roehampton, who doesn’t find it...well... suitable at all.
It turns into a sticky wicket.
Sebastian meets a man at one of his mother’s parties by the name of Leonard Anquetil, who is invited as a peculiar person of personal accomplishment. He is a famous explorer who has conquered jungles and lived to tell about it. ”There was no mistaking that strange countenance, pitted with the blue gunpowder, scarred by the sword-cut; a countenance sallow and sarcastic between the two black puffs of hair.” Anquetil has no title or inherited money. He is a self-made man in the best possible fashion. Sebastian had never met anyone like him.
Anquetil is the temptation. He is the father figure who could make a better man of Sebastian, but he would have to give up his life at Chevron to go adventuring with Anquetil. Despite his superficial existence, I can’t help liking Sebastian because of his love for the family estate. It is real. He doesn’t weigh it to see what it is worth. He looks upon the beauty and the people with true love and affection. This is certainly Vita Sackville-West peering through her character’s eyes for a moment. She never inherited her family estate at Knole House, and for the rest of her life she pined for the person she was when she lived there.
Portrait of Vita Sackville-West by William Strang.
Sebastian knows he will never find another to match Sylvia, so he tries romancing a series of very different women. There is Theresa, the Doctor’s wife, whom he is sure he can woo with the glamor of his life that she admits to be so enamored with, but despite his most charming efforts, she proves obstinate in maintaining her faithfulness to her husband. There is a pretty estate girl who is ushered off stage by his mother once things start to look serious. He finds a bohemian girl by the name of Phil ,who sees the world and her place in it with clearer eyes than Sebastian. ”With her black hair cut square; her red, generous mouth; her thick white throat; and brilliant colours; especially when she crouched gipsy-like, over her guitar.”
He asks her if she would marry him. She laughs at his naivete. As crazy as it seems to even consider marrying a coarse girl several class rungs below him, he is just trying desperately to escape his predestination. He can’t help but ask himself, isn’t there more than this?
And then Anquetil reappears.
So who is this Vita Sackville-West?
Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West in 1933.
Vita Sackville-West had an open marriage with the writer and politician Harold Nicolson. They were both bi-sexual and had numerous affairs during their marriage. The most famous of these affairs was between Vita and Virginia Woolf. Woolf wrote the book Orlando and based the main character on Vita. This book was what Vita’s son Nigel called ”The longest and most charming love letter in the history of literature.”
This book, The Edwardians, came out in 1930 and was published by the Woolf owned Hogarth Press. It was a smashing success. The world was mired in a recession, and the book hearkened back to better days. It was selling 800 copies a day and by the end of six months had sold over 20,000 copies. The Edwardian age was long passed, and people were looking back at that last extravagant age as a time that would never come again. It might seem odd that the lower classes were so fascinated with the upper classes during a time of economic struggle, but if we don’t know about such people and the lives they lead, how can we dream?
Part of the restored gardens at Sissinghurst.
Sackville-West never did recover her family estate, but she did buy the moldering remains of Sissinghurst, an estate that used to belong to another ancestor long before. The money from the success of this book helped to restore it to better than its former glory.
I have recently read a biography of Edward the VII called The Heir Apparent: A Life of Edward VII, the Playboy Prince so there was certainly some added enjoyment for me when Edward, known as Bertie, would be seen loitering at one of these high society events. The people reading this book in 1930 would have recognized many of the thinly disguised, real life people used as characters in this novel. In the front of the book, Sackville-West states: ”No character in this book is wholly fictitious.”
Oh Vita, you naughty, naughty girl.
If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
I also have a Facebook blogger page at: https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyKeeten
November 4, 2023
My first ever Vita Sackville-West book and it wont be my last(I have another lined up for reading). This earns a place in my all-tme favorites, a novel that peers into the lives of the old aristocrats known as The Edwardians. Because V.Sackville-West came from this sort of background I felt like I was getting an inside look into this world ruled by class, society, the fashionable, the haughty and the snobbish of this wonderful era. I absolutely love this book and I recommend it to everyone who is a fan of Downton Abbey and the like.
January 12, 2021
Read this to prep for reading her letters with Virginia Woolf. I was pleasantly surprised by it- it begins with a lot of juicy gossipy scenarios which were fun, but it ended up covering deeper ground, feeling a bit like historical fiction about the end of the Edwardian era and what it means to be born into a symbolic and expectant society while reconciling ones own impulses and passions.
February 16, 2017
History records that Vita Sackville-West wrote ‘The Edwardians’ on holiday, targeting popular success. Her book was a huge hit, it was adapted for the stage, it was translated into several languages, but neither its author or its publisher saw it as having any claim to literary greatness.
They were probably right, but it is a lovely entertainment that captures a particular time and a particular class wonderfully well.
The author wrote what she knew, and at the very beginning of the book she notes that:
“No character in this book is wholly fictitious.”
If you have knowledge of her and her circle you will appreciate that; and understand that she is looking back at the world that she grew up in, comparing it with the world that her mother knew and the very different world that her children knew; and knowing that, while she loved it dearly, it was fatally flawed.
But it doesn’t matter if you know nothing at all, because the book is such a lovely period piece.
The story opens in 1905, with Sebastian, the nineteen year-old Duke of Chevron ascending to the roof of his country home to escape the guests at his mother’s house party. She loves society, while Sebastian isn’t quite sure how he feels. He is drawn to the glamour of his mother’s social set, but he can’t help being aware of how shallow their lives and their values really are.
His estate, Chevron, is a working estate, and Sebastian loved everything he can see and hear from his high vantage point.
“The whole community of the great house was humming at its work. In the stables, men were grooming horses; in the ‘shops’, the carpenters plane sent the wood-chips flying, the diamond of the glazier hissed on the glass; in the forge, the hammer rang in the anvil, and the bellows windily sighed … Sebastian heard the music and saw the vision. It was a tapestry that he saw, and heard the strains of a wind orchestra.”
It had been that way for hundreds of years, with sons following their fathers into the shops to learn a trade, and with positions within the house filled by the daughters and nieces of those already employed; with staff claiming – and constrained by – their inheritance just as much as the family they served.
All of this is so vividly evoked, and the early chapters are rich with details of the life of the house, the party arrangements, the family, and a veritable army of servants.
One of the weekend visitors to Chevron, Leonard Antequil, didn’t belong to that world; but his adventurous life, including a winter spent alone in a snow hut in the Arctic Circle, and had brought him fame and made him a very desirable guest for the fashionable set.
It may not have occurred to the other guests that he was there as the result of his own of his efforts while they were there only by chance of birth or marriage. Or that he thought little of them.
One night Sebastian invited him up onto the roof, and he spoke to him openly and honestly, sensing his dissatisfaction and urging him to recognise the limitations of his lifestyle and to consider breaking with tradition.
“Very well, if you want the truth, here it is. The society you live in is composed of people who are both dissolute and prudent. They want to have their fun, and they want to keep their position. They glitter on the surface, but underneath the surface they are stupid – too stupid to recognise their own motives. They know only a limited number of things about themselves: that they need plenty of money, and that they must be seen in the right places, associated with the right people. In spite of their efforts to turn themselves into painted images, they remain human somewhere, and must indulge in love-affairs, which are sometimes artificial, and sometimes inconveniently real. Whatever happens the world must be served first.”
Sebastian is torn between his deep love of his home and his knowledge of the truth of Antequil’s words.
The arguments are beautifully expressed and perfectly balanced.
Sebastian regretfully declines Antequil’s invitation to accompany him on his next trip; but he never forgets their conversation.
He is seduced by an older woman, a society beauty of his mother’s generation; when their affair is ended by an ultimatum from her husband he drifts into a shallow life as a man about time; and then he draws a middle-class doctor’s wife into his life, and makes the mistake of inviting her to Chevron ….
“He had tried the most fashionable society, and he had tried the middle-class, and in both his plunging spirit had got stuck in the glue of convention and hypocrisy.”
All of this says much about Sebastian’s world; but it isn’t quite as engaging as those early chapters about life at the family estate.
Meanwhile, the world was changing.
Sebastian’s sister, Viola, knew that, and she was glad.
“For what have our mothers thought of us, all these years?” said Viola; “that we should make a good marriage, so that they might feel that they had done their duty by us, and were rid of their responsibility with an added pride. A successful daughter plus an eligible son-in-law. Any other possibility never entered their heads – that we might consult our own tastes for instance ….”
The author knew that.
The first defection at Chevron, when the head-carpenter’s son chooses a job in the new motor industry rather than follow his father into Chevron’s shops, illustrated that beautifully.
Sebastian was caught up with his own concerns, he was unhappy, but an encounter with Leonard Antequil on the day of the coronation of George V made him realise that he could change his life.
But would he?
I can’t say, and there are lots of details that I haven’t shared.
I loved this book: the prose, the conviction, the wealth of detail, the depiction of society.
That’s not to say it’s perfect. It’s a little uneven, the structure isn’t strong, and much of what it has to say feels familiar.
But it does so much so well, it has such authenticity, and it is a wonderfully readable period piece.
They were probably right, but it is a lovely entertainment that captures a particular time and a particular class wonderfully well.
The author wrote what she knew, and at the very beginning of the book she notes that:
“No character in this book is wholly fictitious.”
If you have knowledge of her and her circle you will appreciate that; and understand that she is looking back at the world that she grew up in, comparing it with the world that her mother knew and the very different world that her children knew; and knowing that, while she loved it dearly, it was fatally flawed.
But it doesn’t matter if you know nothing at all, because the book is such a lovely period piece.
The story opens in 1905, with Sebastian, the nineteen year-old Duke of Chevron ascending to the roof of his country home to escape the guests at his mother’s house party. She loves society, while Sebastian isn’t quite sure how he feels. He is drawn to the glamour of his mother’s social set, but he can’t help being aware of how shallow their lives and their values really are.
His estate, Chevron, is a working estate, and Sebastian loved everything he can see and hear from his high vantage point.
“The whole community of the great house was humming at its work. In the stables, men were grooming horses; in the ‘shops’, the carpenters plane sent the wood-chips flying, the diamond of the glazier hissed on the glass; in the forge, the hammer rang in the anvil, and the bellows windily sighed … Sebastian heard the music and saw the vision. It was a tapestry that he saw, and heard the strains of a wind orchestra.”
It had been that way for hundreds of years, with sons following their fathers into the shops to learn a trade, and with positions within the house filled by the daughters and nieces of those already employed; with staff claiming – and constrained by – their inheritance just as much as the family they served.
All of this is so vividly evoked, and the early chapters are rich with details of the life of the house, the party arrangements, the family, and a veritable army of servants.
One of the weekend visitors to Chevron, Leonard Antequil, didn’t belong to that world; but his adventurous life, including a winter spent alone in a snow hut in the Arctic Circle, and had brought him fame and made him a very desirable guest for the fashionable set.
It may not have occurred to the other guests that he was there as the result of his own of his efforts while they were there only by chance of birth or marriage. Or that he thought little of them.
One night Sebastian invited him up onto the roof, and he spoke to him openly and honestly, sensing his dissatisfaction and urging him to recognise the limitations of his lifestyle and to consider breaking with tradition.
“Very well, if you want the truth, here it is. The society you live in is composed of people who are both dissolute and prudent. They want to have their fun, and they want to keep their position. They glitter on the surface, but underneath the surface they are stupid – too stupid to recognise their own motives. They know only a limited number of things about themselves: that they need plenty of money, and that they must be seen in the right places, associated with the right people. In spite of their efforts to turn themselves into painted images, they remain human somewhere, and must indulge in love-affairs, which are sometimes artificial, and sometimes inconveniently real. Whatever happens the world must be served first.”
Sebastian is torn between his deep love of his home and his knowledge of the truth of Antequil’s words.
The arguments are beautifully expressed and perfectly balanced.
Sebastian regretfully declines Antequil’s invitation to accompany him on his next trip; but he never forgets their conversation.
He is seduced by an older woman, a society beauty of his mother’s generation; when their affair is ended by an ultimatum from her husband he drifts into a shallow life as a man about time; and then he draws a middle-class doctor’s wife into his life, and makes the mistake of inviting her to Chevron ….
“He had tried the most fashionable society, and he had tried the middle-class, and in both his plunging spirit had got stuck in the glue of convention and hypocrisy.”
All of this says much about Sebastian’s world; but it isn’t quite as engaging as those early chapters about life at the family estate.
Meanwhile, the world was changing.
Sebastian’s sister, Viola, knew that, and she was glad.
“For what have our mothers thought of us, all these years?” said Viola; “that we should make a good marriage, so that they might feel that they had done their duty by us, and were rid of their responsibility with an added pride. A successful daughter plus an eligible son-in-law. Any other possibility never entered their heads – that we might consult our own tastes for instance ….”
The author knew that.
The first defection at Chevron, when the head-carpenter’s son chooses a job in the new motor industry rather than follow his father into Chevron’s shops, illustrated that beautifully.
Sebastian was caught up with his own concerns, he was unhappy, but an encounter with Leonard Antequil on the day of the coronation of George V made him realise that he could change his life.
But would he?
I can’t say, and there are lots of details that I haven’t shared.
I loved this book: the prose, the conviction, the wealth of detail, the depiction of society.
That’s not to say it’s perfect. It’s a little uneven, the structure isn’t strong, and much of what it has to say feels familiar.
But it does so much so well, it has such authenticity, and it is a wonderfully readable period piece.
July 28, 2018
Lo que me ha gustado. Mucho disfruto de esta clase de libros.. no puedo evitarlo, es mi única Dorcas debilidad^^
Ha sido como ver la serie Downton Abbey o Upstairs Downstairs por el retrato tan ¡magnífico! de la sociedad inglesa de comienzos del siglo XX con sus deslumbrantes pero encorsetadas costumbres, un mundo de entrañables tradiciones ligadas a la mansión de Chevron contempladas a través de los ojos de sus dos jóvenes protagonistas, los hermanos Sebastián y Viola, sobre todo de Sebastián futuro heredero y duque. Es al mismo tiempo una novela de aprendizaje, pues lo veremos crecer y tomar decisiones respecto la vida futura que elegirán cada uno entre tantas exquisiteces que los rodea a la par que artificialidad, hipocresía y superficialidad.
Ha sido como ver la serie Downton Abbey o Upstairs Downstairs por el retrato tan ¡magnífico! de la sociedad inglesa de comienzos del siglo XX con sus deslumbrantes pero encorsetadas costumbres, un mundo de entrañables tradiciones ligadas a la mansión de Chevron contempladas a través de los ojos de sus dos jóvenes protagonistas, los hermanos Sebastián y Viola, sobre todo de Sebastián futuro heredero y duque. Es al mismo tiempo una novela de aprendizaje, pues lo veremos crecer y tomar decisiones respecto la vida futura que elegirán cada uno entre tantas exquisiteces que los rodea a la par que artificialidad, hipocresía y superficialidad.
June 1, 2025
This is a short book but a slow read is needed to savor the writing and indeed the story. It's a novel but not in the usual vein. It says at the start that no character is entirely fictitious. I love reading about the Edwardian era, the last decadent years of the so called 'First Class, before WWI changed life forever. I reveled in it!
The decadence and selfishness of this hierarchy was monumental. Indeed a lot of these people hadn't a brain in their head. Enjoying oneself was the order of the day with as little regard for anyone else as possible. Even close friendships didn't always ring true. Appearances were the most important thing, it didn't matter what they were doing behind closed doors.
Sebastian, the main character, was selfishness personified. He drifted through life always whining about being trapped because he was a Duke even though he loved his ancestorial home and was happiest there. Trying to find his niche is the main thread of the book.
This is my first read of this author and I loved it!!
The decadence and selfishness of this hierarchy was monumental. Indeed a lot of these people hadn't a brain in their head. Enjoying oneself was the order of the day with as little regard for anyone else as possible. Even close friendships didn't always ring true. Appearances were the most important thing, it didn't matter what they were doing behind closed doors.
Sebastian, the main character, was selfishness personified. He drifted through life always whining about being trapped because he was a Duke even though he loved his ancestorial home and was happiest there. Trying to find his niche is the main thread of the book.
This is my first read of this author and I loved it!!
September 13, 2016
Whereas All Passion Spent had a quiet, old woman at its center, The Edwardians has a dashing, young man. I'm inclined to think Sebastian is a little closer to Vita's own essence, though I suppose that one is debatable. Perhaps she was so annoyed with Woolf's Orlando, she decided to create her own male alter ego!
Both of these books by Vita are well written, so why do I stubbornly withhold that fifth star?
I can certainly appreciate her wit, her wisdom, her stunning prose. But, the thing is, I can't quite relate to her. One obvious reason is that I'm poor and she was insanely rich. Another is a fundamental difference our respective yearnings. She wanted passion, grandeur, adventure. I want constancy and the quiet contentment she seemed to fear.
Though the book has literary merit, it doesn't quite satisfy my own literary cravings. Sorry, Vita!
Both of these books by Vita are well written, so why do I stubbornly withhold that fifth star?
I can certainly appreciate her wit, her wisdom, her stunning prose. But, the thing is, I can't quite relate to her. One obvious reason is that I'm poor and she was insanely rich. Another is a fundamental difference our respective yearnings. She wanted passion, grandeur, adventure. I want constancy and the quiet contentment she seemed to fear.
Though the book has literary merit, it doesn't quite satisfy my own literary cravings. Sorry, Vita!
Read
October 17, 2025no sé com puc ser tan d'esquerres i tan fan de les històries de gent rica insuportable
April 24, 2019
Que bien ha pasado el tiempo por este libro.
🖤Me ha atrapado de principio a fin queriendo saber que les deparaba la vida a los hermanos Sebastián y Viola .
🖤Este libro es un retrato de la sociedad inglesa de la época.Tradiciones,costumbres,élite social ,privilegios y la otra cara de la moneda:perdida de libertad,conformismo .
🖤Me encanto Chevron,la mansión donde transcurre la mayoría de la trama ...diría que es un personaje más Otro plus:Que un personaje femenino sea el que rompa las reglas...hasta aquí puedo contar😜
🖤Una lectura lleva a otra ...empiezo “Orlando” de #virginiawoolf lo tenia esperando en las estanterías hace demasiado .
Yo no sabía que la autora y Virginia tuvieron una relación sentimental,y que se inspiró en ella para crear al protagonista andrógino de “Orlando”.Que mejor momento para empezarlo!
🖤Me ha atrapado de principio a fin queriendo saber que les deparaba la vida a los hermanos Sebastián y Viola .
🖤Este libro es un retrato de la sociedad inglesa de la época.Tradiciones,costumbres,élite social ,privilegios y la otra cara de la moneda:perdida de libertad,conformismo .
🖤Me encanto Chevron,la mansión donde transcurre la mayoría de la trama ...diría que es un personaje más Otro plus:Que un personaje femenino sea el que rompa las reglas...hasta aquí puedo contar😜
🖤Una lectura lleva a otra ...empiezo “Orlando” de #virginiawoolf lo tenia esperando en las estanterías hace demasiado .
Yo no sabía que la autora y Virginia tuvieron una relación sentimental,y que se inspiró en ella para crear al protagonista andrógino de “Orlando”.Que mejor momento para empezarlo!
August 4, 2021
La verdad es que me ha gustado más de lo que en un principio pensé me iba a gustar y lo digo por el estilo de Vita Sackwille-West, muy denso en muchos momentos, pero poco a poco las vidas de los hermanos Viola y Sebastian entre 1905 y 1910, años en que transcurre la novela, me fueron interesando más y más.
La novela empieza y termina con Leonard Anquetil, un personaje que es una especie de brisa de aire fresco en la vida de los hermanos, ya que les hace reflexionar sobre la vida que llevan: el viejo mundo está a punto de desmoronarse ¿y no quieren ellos tomar las riendas de sus vidas antes de vivir encadenados a este artificio de las tradiciones centenarias, presiones sociales, feudalismo y rituales mastodónticos? Este primer encuentro con el explorador Anquetil les marcará definitivamente.
"Estás condenado, mi pobre Sebastián; no hay quien te salve. Aunque intentaras desatarte, sería en vano. Tus peores excesos encajarán en algún casillero. La cómoda expresión "locuras de juventud" te cubrirá de los veinte años a los treinta. La cómoda palabra "excéntrico" te cubrira de los treinta a los cuarenta. "Un noble excéntrico". Eso es a lo más que puedes aspirar".
Quizás lo que más me guste de esta historia es la sensación de sentirse atrapados de Viola y Sebastian, son absolutamente conscientes de ello y aunque les resulte prácticamente imposible escapar de los roles marcados desde el nacimiento de por vida, la sensación de asfixia y ansiedad que les produce este estilo de vida, está perfectamente reflejado por Vita Sackwille-West.
La novela empieza y termina con Leonard Anquetil, un personaje que es una especie de brisa de aire fresco en la vida de los hermanos, ya que les hace reflexionar sobre la vida que llevan: el viejo mundo está a punto de desmoronarse ¿y no quieren ellos tomar las riendas de sus vidas antes de vivir encadenados a este artificio de las tradiciones centenarias, presiones sociales, feudalismo y rituales mastodónticos? Este primer encuentro con el explorador Anquetil les marcará definitivamente.
"Estás condenado, mi pobre Sebastián; no hay quien te salve. Aunque intentaras desatarte, sería en vano. Tus peores excesos encajarán en algún casillero. La cómoda expresión "locuras de juventud" te cubrirá de los veinte años a los treinta. La cómoda palabra "excéntrico" te cubrira de los treinta a los cuarenta. "Un noble excéntrico". Eso es a lo más que puedes aspirar".
Quizás lo que más me guste de esta historia es la sensación de sentirse atrapados de Viola y Sebastian, son absolutamente conscientes de ello y aunque les resulte prácticamente imposible escapar de los roles marcados desde el nacimiento de por vida, la sensación de asfixia y ansiedad que les produce este estilo de vida, está perfectamente reflejado por Vita Sackwille-West.
November 29, 2017
I’ve been aware of Sackville-West for some time and, though I knew she was a writer, I thought of her mainly in relation to Virginia Woolf so I was surprised at how good The Edwardians was. It’s set during that short period after Queen Victoria’s death and the reign of her eldest son Edward. The main character is a young duke named Sebastian.
Of course he’s inherited a life of privilege with all its ancient traditions but after he meets someone from outside his class Sebastian begins to question his life. The Edwardians threw off some of the staid values of Victoria’s morals and, at least the upper classes, became downright licentious or was it that the stopped trying to hide it? Sackville-West also explores women’s issue through the eyes of Sebastian’s mother and sister and through the eyes of his lovers. Sackville-West wasn’t just a hanger on to the Bloomsbury group but an active talent.
Thank you to the publisher for providing an advance reader copy.
Of course he’s inherited a life of privilege with all its ancient traditions but after he meets someone from outside his class Sebastian begins to question his life. The Edwardians threw off some of the staid values of Victoria’s morals and, at least the upper classes, became downright licentious or was it that the stopped trying to hide it? Sackville-West also explores women’s issue through the eyes of Sebastian’s mother and sister and through the eyes of his lovers. Sackville-West wasn’t just a hanger on to the Bloomsbury group but an active talent.
Thank you to the publisher for providing an advance reader copy.
June 13, 2019
Este libro es bueno, no lo voy a negar, pero no me ha gustado tantísimo como esperaba que lo hiciera. Hay escenas y momentos que me han resultado sublimes pero otros se me han hecho un poco más tediosos.
Me hubiese gustado que los criados y la relación con sus señores hubiese tenido más protagonismo puesto que han sido las partes que se desarrollaban en la residencia campestre las que más me gustaban.
En cualquier caso, es un buen acercamiento a la alta sociedad de una época que desapareció para siempre.
Me hubiese gustado que los criados y la relación con sus señores hubiese tenido más protagonismo puesto que han sido las partes que se desarrollaban en la residencia campestre las que más me gustaban.
En cualquier caso, es un buen acercamiento a la alta sociedad de una época que desapareció para siempre.
August 6, 2021
Por asociación con Virginia Woolf y el grupo Bloomsbury, al que tanto Vita como Woolf pertenecían, pensé que me iba a encontrar con un libro más bien denso. Pero lo cierto es que es muy ligero y fluido, fácil de leer. Al menos en la forma como está escrito y en la elección de lo que se va a contar: Vita habla de la corrupción del ser humano y de la decadencia de una clase social acostumbrada a ser la base a partir de la cual se estructuraba la vieja Europa (la nobleza y aristocracia fue uno de los tres estamentos desde tiempos inmemoriales). Encontramos humor malicioso, salseo, cinismo hipócrita, comentarios, juicios y prejuicios. El lector va pasando las páginas sabiendo todos los secretos y esperando el momento en que todo explote. Una gozada.
April 4, 2013
Well, not all of them. Which must be something of a relief. In fact, there's quite a small cast: Sebastian, Duke of Chevron; his immediates; his squeezes; his servants; his tenants; a smattering of the Dowager's awful friends; a rather unbelievable adventurer; and then ending with ... Zadok the Priest and Nathan the Prophet anointed Solomon King ... a chapter at the Coronation of George V!
In the opening chapter our Duke's a boy and I thought (hoped) he'd be England's answer to Kiyoaki, the young heir to the Marquis Matsugae in Mishima's "Spring Snow". Look!:
"'Sebastian sulky is irresistible. Promise me you will never ruin him by persuading him to appear good-tempered.'"
"One half of Sebastian detested his mother's friends; the other half was allured by their glitter."
"The ambassador's words threw Sebastian into an ill humour, he was stung, disturbed; he was ashamed of his virginity. People were not very real to him, and women least of all."
"For Sebastian liked to pour vinegar into his own wounds."
But then Sebastian is rather ruined by a very safe relationship with his mother's best friend, Lady Roehampton ... and not only was I denied my "English 'Spring Snow' fantasy" but the whole thing started to fizzle out.
It also felt that once Vita had done her "this is how an Edwardian grand house worked" bit, she'd rather lost interest herself.
Still, very amusing at times:
"There were thirty people to luncheon; but two places remained empty; they were destined for two people who were motoring down from London and who, naturally, had so far failed to arrive The duchess never waited for motorists. They must take their chance. And, to-day being a Sunday, they would not be able to send the usual telegram saying that they had broken down."
"These parties of theirs, he thought, were like chain-smoking: each cigarette was lighted in the hope that it might be more satisfactory than the last."
"one must certainly have the lion of the moment at one's parties, it was perhaps just as well that he should not boringly roar."
"Lucy laughed her silvery laugh, the laugh that had made several men believe that she understood what they said."
"It was one thing to be admired because one was so lovely, and quite another thing to be admired because one was still so lovely."
"her social vanity was mortified. She knew it, when she met the Duchess of D. dining with Lucy, and was given two fingers instead of three – she had never been given five – and was called Lady Roehampton instead of 'Sylvia'.
'What a success you have had!' Said the duchess, putting up her lorgnon as though to scrutinise the remains of Sylvia's beauty; 'the Daily Mail this morning was full of your praises. Quite a public character you have become.' Sylvia's only wonder was that the duchess should condescend to mention the Daily Mail at all."
"Sylvia descended upon this gathering as a bird of paradise might wing down upon an assembly of hens."
"People like us must never think, for fear of thinking ourselves out of existence."
"Everybody streamed out of the Abbey, greatly relieved. They were tired, but how impressive it had been! And, thank heaven, no one had thrown a bomb."
In the opening chapter our Duke's a boy and I thought (hoped) he'd be England's answer to Kiyoaki, the young heir to the Marquis Matsugae in Mishima's "Spring Snow". Look!:
"'Sebastian sulky is irresistible. Promise me you will never ruin him by persuading him to appear good-tempered.'"
"One half of Sebastian detested his mother's friends; the other half was allured by their glitter."
"The ambassador's words threw Sebastian into an ill humour, he was stung, disturbed; he was ashamed of his virginity. People were not very real to him, and women least of all."
"For Sebastian liked to pour vinegar into his own wounds."
But then Sebastian is rather ruined by a very safe relationship with his mother's best friend, Lady Roehampton ... and not only was I denied my "English 'Spring Snow' fantasy" but the whole thing started to fizzle out.
It also felt that once Vita had done her "this is how an Edwardian grand house worked" bit, she'd rather lost interest herself.
Still, very amusing at times:
"There were thirty people to luncheon; but two places remained empty; they were destined for two people who were motoring down from London and who, naturally, had so far failed to arrive The duchess never waited for motorists. They must take their chance. And, to-day being a Sunday, they would not be able to send the usual telegram saying that they had broken down."
"These parties of theirs, he thought, were like chain-smoking: each cigarette was lighted in the hope that it might be more satisfactory than the last."
"one must certainly have the lion of the moment at one's parties, it was perhaps just as well that he should not boringly roar."
"Lucy laughed her silvery laugh, the laugh that had made several men believe that she understood what they said."
"It was one thing to be admired because one was so lovely, and quite another thing to be admired because one was still so lovely."
"her social vanity was mortified. She knew it, when she met the Duchess of D. dining with Lucy, and was given two fingers instead of three – she had never been given five – and was called Lady Roehampton instead of 'Sylvia'.
'What a success you have had!' Said the duchess, putting up her lorgnon as though to scrutinise the remains of Sylvia's beauty; 'the Daily Mail this morning was full of your praises. Quite a public character you have become.' Sylvia's only wonder was that the duchess should condescend to mention the Daily Mail at all."
"Sylvia descended upon this gathering as a bird of paradise might wing down upon an assembly of hens."
"People like us must never think, for fear of thinking ourselves out of existence."
"Everybody streamed out of the Abbey, greatly relieved. They were tired, but how impressive it had been! And, thank heaven, no one had thrown a bomb."
November 5, 2019
In the Author’s Note to this book, Vita Sackville-West allows herself this bit of honesty: No character in this book is wholly fictitious. She made no secret of the fact that the great house Chevron in this novel was modelled on Knole, her own ancestral estate in Sevenoaks, Kent. The chatelaine of the house, Lucy, was based on her own mother Victoria. The protagonist Sebastian and his sister Viola both represented Vita, the different aspects of her character, but in Sebastian she was able to be the ‘heir’ - a role which was denied to her in real life, as the laws of male primogeniture were still firmly in place.
Published in 1930, it was set during the Edwardian era - the last lavish gasp of the old aristocratic order, before the First World War changed everything. It was her most successful novel, especially in the United States where it enjoyed something of the Downton Abbey effect. The Americans loved reading about British aristocrats, especially as the Great Depression began to bite, especially since there was that frisson of the true insider’s view. The novel revived the fortunes of the struggling Hogarth Press, and there is a well-known quote from one of Virginia Woolf’s letters in which she gloats about the book’s success. “Vita’s book is such a bestseller that Leonard and I are hauling in money like pilchards from a net.”
During my Vita Sackville-West period of this past summer, I read various biographies, memoirs and diaries by or about Vita and her circle of friends and family. I also read her novels All Passion Spent and Family History. But I did feel that until I had read The Edwardians and visited Knole, I wouldn’t be able to put my Vita obsession to rest. Do I feel done now? Yes, I think so.
The book was a disappointment to me, not because of the writing - which is generally graceful, and often quite beautiful - but just because I couldn’t really feel very bothered about Sebastian and his internal quandaries and his ennui and his feeling that both Knole and his own role within it had become an anachronism. Sebastian is bored by his mother’s friends and their endless parties so he falls in love with a society beauty old enough to be his mother. Sebastian is attracted to the adventurous life of a Mr. Anquetil, explorer of the Arctic Circle, but as much as he wants to break away from the chains of Knole (and the role expected of him as heir), he feels equally bound by his love for it.
In some ways I felt like the novel served as a epitaph. More than Sebastian, Sackville-West knew that the days of Knole were numbered. She also knew why. So the novel celebrates the beauty of that feudal way of life, while also acknowledging that it was in its last decadent phase. Now it reads like a period piece, but it’s hard to feel any real nostalgia for its passing.
Published in 1930, it was set during the Edwardian era - the last lavish gasp of the old aristocratic order, before the First World War changed everything. It was her most successful novel, especially in the United States where it enjoyed something of the Downton Abbey effect. The Americans loved reading about British aristocrats, especially as the Great Depression began to bite, especially since there was that frisson of the true insider’s view. The novel revived the fortunes of the struggling Hogarth Press, and there is a well-known quote from one of Virginia Woolf’s letters in which she gloats about the book’s success. “Vita’s book is such a bestseller that Leonard and I are hauling in money like pilchards from a net.”
During my Vita Sackville-West period of this past summer, I read various biographies, memoirs and diaries by or about Vita and her circle of friends and family. I also read her novels All Passion Spent and Family History. But I did feel that until I had read The Edwardians and visited Knole, I wouldn’t be able to put my Vita obsession to rest. Do I feel done now? Yes, I think so.
The book was a disappointment to me, not because of the writing - which is generally graceful, and often quite beautiful - but just because I couldn’t really feel very bothered about Sebastian and his internal quandaries and his ennui and his feeling that both Knole and his own role within it had become an anachronism. Sebastian is bored by his mother’s friends and their endless parties so he falls in love with a society beauty old enough to be his mother. Sebastian is attracted to the adventurous life of a Mr. Anquetil, explorer of the Arctic Circle, but as much as he wants to break away from the chains of Knole (and the role expected of him as heir), he feels equally bound by his love for it.
In some ways I felt like the novel served as a epitaph. More than Sebastian, Sackville-West knew that the days of Knole were numbered. She also knew why. So the novel celebrates the beauty of that feudal way of life, while also acknowledging that it was in its last decadent phase. Now it reads like a period piece, but it’s hard to feel any real nostalgia for its passing.
March 28, 2019
Apparently this book was the author's most popular book. One wonders why. There's almost no story to speak of and the psychological musings are toe-curling, probably because the author chooses to reverse the "show don't tell" principle. In many instances she does both: first tell, then show.
On the other hand, this heavy handedness makes the book palatable as a parody.
On the other hand, this heavy handedness makes the book palatable as a parody.
July 24, 2024
Some 15 pages into this and I told my Friend that it's a ripoff mix between The Picture of Dorian Gray and Dangerous Liaisons, with no intention of taking it back right now.
“Since one cannot have truth,’ cried Sebastian, struggling into his evening shirt, ‘let us at least have good manners.”
So very preachy, our Mrs. Sackville-West. Like the priest lecturing on morality then makes a quick stop at the local brothel before going home to have the supper that was prepared by someone else.
“Lady Roehampton was not a young woman; but she was still, though not without taking a certain amount of trouble, beautiful. This question of the middle-aged woman’s beauty and desirability has never sufficiently been exploited by novelists.”
Yes, it has. By oh so many. Vita is just proving she's not as well read as she pretends to be, shit observational learning from Woolf complaining in On Being Ill that there aren't many books discussing illness.
I dislike both of these stuck up, conceited and patronizing witches with a B.
“Since one cannot have truth,’ cried Sebastian, struggling into his evening shirt, ‘let us at least have good manners.”
So very preachy, our Mrs. Sackville-West. Like the priest lecturing on morality then makes a quick stop at the local brothel before going home to have the supper that was prepared by someone else.
“Lady Roehampton was not a young woman; but she was still, though not without taking a certain amount of trouble, beautiful. This question of the middle-aged woman’s beauty and desirability has never sufficiently been exploited by novelists.”
Yes, it has. By oh so many. Vita is just proving she's not as well read as she pretends to be, shit observational learning from Woolf complaining in On Being Ill that there aren't many books discussing illness.
I dislike both of these stuck up, conceited and patronizing witches with a B.
February 6, 2012
The Edwardians is my first foray into the work of Vita Sackville-West. Prior to this all I knew of Miss Sackville-West was her firm association with Virginia Woolf. Shame on me for not seeking out her own personal brilliance sooner.
The Edwardians is a in depth look into high society of Great Britons Edwardian period. The novel is supposedly based on many a true fact and figure. Set mainly, in the country estate house of Chevron the book deals with the highly guarded relationships of the social set of the era and their many first world issues.
The language and the imagery brings this not so distant past into close focus. It's easy to get swept away in a world so far from ones own but at the same time knowing that the actual relatability of the characters is far from accessible.
Not much happens in the way of plot points but it takes a step back from the reading process to really notice. The characters thoughts and opinions are such that they take over your conscious thought.
While highly enjoyable, I found the novel unsettling at times. Being dragged into a place where loveless marriages of convenience are more than acceptable and where no one can really be trusted is a little dubious but overall I found being swept away to 'a more civilized' time wonderfully distracting.
My particular edition was purchased at Shakespeare and Co in Paris and it has the famous stamp to prove it. I've looked forward to reading this book for years now but have continually put it off for one reason or another. I'm glad to have finally finished its pages and even more pleased that they didn't prove a dissapointment.
For anyone yet to sample the lyrical prose of Vita Sackville-West, I highly recommend you do so as soon as possible.
The Edwardians is a in depth look into high society of Great Britons Edwardian period. The novel is supposedly based on many a true fact and figure. Set mainly, in the country estate house of Chevron the book deals with the highly guarded relationships of the social set of the era and their many first world issues.
The language and the imagery brings this not so distant past into close focus. It's easy to get swept away in a world so far from ones own but at the same time knowing that the actual relatability of the characters is far from accessible.
Not much happens in the way of plot points but it takes a step back from the reading process to really notice. The characters thoughts and opinions are such that they take over your conscious thought.
While highly enjoyable, I found the novel unsettling at times. Being dragged into a place where loveless marriages of convenience are more than acceptable and where no one can really be trusted is a little dubious but overall I found being swept away to 'a more civilized' time wonderfully distracting.
My particular edition was purchased at Shakespeare and Co in Paris and it has the famous stamp to prove it. I've looked forward to reading this book for years now but have continually put it off for one reason or another. I'm glad to have finally finished its pages and even more pleased that they didn't prove a dissapointment.
For anyone yet to sample the lyrical prose of Vita Sackville-West, I highly recommend you do so as soon as possible.
July 19, 2015
I read as far as the first two chapters, before flipping fast-forward to the final chapter and the Coronation of King George V. I faced up to the inevitable; I had to admit that here was a book I didn’t care for was. The unadorned, dull, flat pace of the writing engendered nothing but yawning. My interest and sympathies were not engaged. Where was the point? Indeed was there a point? Lifting and casting my eyes around the room I was reminded of no shortage of other books yet to be read.
I may be guilty here, literally, of missing the plot, big time. Whatever merits this novel possesses, this book gave me a glimpse of one woman’s somewhat bleak interpretation of early twentieth century English upper class Edwardian Society; a life of tightly interwoven blood relationships that she appeared ill at ease with, though born into that social class herself.
A “Brideshead Revisited” or a “Forsythe Saga” of the first decade of the twentieth century, “The Edwardians” is most definitely not. Neither has it been filmed neither for TV or cinema. Should I wonder why?
I may be guilty here, literally, of missing the plot, big time. Whatever merits this novel possesses, this book gave me a glimpse of one woman’s somewhat bleak interpretation of early twentieth century English upper class Edwardian Society; a life of tightly interwoven blood relationships that she appeared ill at ease with, though born into that social class herself.
A “Brideshead Revisited” or a “Forsythe Saga” of the first decade of the twentieth century, “The Edwardians” is most definitely not. Neither has it been filmed neither for TV or cinema. Should I wonder why?
January 23, 2022
The story behind The Edwardians had its roots in author Vita Sackville-West's own privileged upbringing.
Taking place during the reign of Britain's King Edward VII, the novel relates the coming of age of Sebastian, the heir of a grand estate. The characters who surround him are primarily pleasure-focused elite who hold to rigid traditions and behaviors while all around them social, economic, and technological change accelerates. Affairs and shady business dealings are fine, just as long as you don't get caught. The worst thing for these people is scandal.
The book moves at a leisurely pace while it dives deeply into Sebastian's coming of age as a young man. He is conflicted by his role in society. Sometimes he rails against expectations and other times he embraces them. By the end, he finds a way to balance his status and wealth with mature independence.
Taking place during the reign of Britain's King Edward VII, the novel relates the coming of age of Sebastian, the heir of a grand estate. The characters who surround him are primarily pleasure-focused elite who hold to rigid traditions and behaviors while all around them social, economic, and technological change accelerates. Affairs and shady business dealings are fine, just as long as you don't get caught. The worst thing for these people is scandal.
The book moves at a leisurely pace while it dives deeply into Sebastian's coming of age as a young man. He is conflicted by his role in society. Sometimes he rails against expectations and other times he embraces them. By the end, he finds a way to balance his status and wealth with mature independence.
December 27, 2022
I have no recollection of reading this in 2002 and I only gave it three stars. This time it gets 5.
September 20, 2018
An iconoclastic review soon/Crítica iconoclasta en breve.
July 26, 2013
I should probably have read this a long time ago. But life is full of unhelpful "shoulds" that don't get you anywhere. I actually think it is better that I read it now - me being ancient and all. The Edwardians is about young Sebastian and Viola, brother and sister, and more importantly part of the aristocracy of England.
It's set in the early 1900s - before WW1. There's much description of house parties, the social scene in London and it ends with the coronation of George V. And really it does seem terribly antiquated and far removed from reality when you read it. A kind of snapshot into another era.
Except I was reading it just as we were waiting for the Windsors to announce the birth of the third in line to the throne, so it added a certain poignancy to the reading. Or vice versa - I'm not sure which.
One is much struck with how much things have changed. And how much they haven't. By the by, I also saw "Before Midnight" yesterday which for the large part was excruciatingly annoying but had a few good moments. One of them was when an elderly gent intoned something along the lines of "Every generation thinks the end of the world is nigh or going to pot or some such". And certainly that is the case with The Edwardians. The older generation is deeply concerned at the loss of the perceived values of the younger set - the rise of the middle classes and the decay of the upper classes. As we sat on our sofas in our lounge rooms waiting for the announcement of the birth, we too were tut tutting that the media had ruined everything and how ridiculous it all was - and yet we watched....
Most of the story is taken up with Sebastian's internal struggle to accept his fate as part of the peerage. He chafes at the "prison" that his accident of birth has dictated. He becomes embroiled in a series of unsuitable attachments whilst relishing his role as lord of the estate, tramping through the grounds with his faithful hounds. Will he find a good match? Will he settle down?
I found the last chapter particularly riveting and it concluded very satisfactorily - as often happens in life - with the line "The coach came to a standstill in Grosvenor Square" just as my very own train came to a standstill at Roma Street Station after my holiday in Woodgate. Back to reality and work on Tuesday!
It's set in the early 1900s - before WW1. There's much description of house parties, the social scene in London and it ends with the coronation of George V. And really it does seem terribly antiquated and far removed from reality when you read it. A kind of snapshot into another era.
Except I was reading it just as we were waiting for the Windsors to announce the birth of the third in line to the throne, so it added a certain poignancy to the reading. Or vice versa - I'm not sure which.
One is much struck with how much things have changed. And how much they haven't. By the by, I also saw "Before Midnight" yesterday which for the large part was excruciatingly annoying but had a few good moments. One of them was when an elderly gent intoned something along the lines of "Every generation thinks the end of the world is nigh or going to pot or some such". And certainly that is the case with The Edwardians. The older generation is deeply concerned at the loss of the perceived values of the younger set - the rise of the middle classes and the decay of the upper classes. As we sat on our sofas in our lounge rooms waiting for the announcement of the birth, we too were tut tutting that the media had ruined everything and how ridiculous it all was - and yet we watched....
Most of the story is taken up with Sebastian's internal struggle to accept his fate as part of the peerage. He chafes at the "prison" that his accident of birth has dictated. He becomes embroiled in a series of unsuitable attachments whilst relishing his role as lord of the estate, tramping through the grounds with his faithful hounds. Will he find a good match? Will he settle down?
I found the last chapter particularly riveting and it concluded very satisfactorily - as often happens in life - with the line "The coach came to a standstill in Grosvenor Square" just as my very own train came to a standstill at Roma Street Station after my holiday in Woodgate. Back to reality and work on Tuesday!
May 22, 2022
This is a delicious little peek behind the curtains of the inhabitants and social circle of a grand English estate at the end of the Edwardian era and greatly reminded me of a mash-up of Downton Abby and Bridgerton. Vita is a wonderful writer; “all passion spent” is remarkable- and although this is a completely different story, i liked it almost as much. I see why this book was so popular when it was published - it is as gossipy and breezy as lady whistledown’s letters and I imagine caused much amusement for people trying to figure out which character was based on which aristocrat. It sold so well that Vita renovated Sissinghurst with the proceeds and Virginia and Leonard (as the publishers) bought a car and started more home renovations at Monk’s House.
It’s kind of in conversation with “Orlando,” in that Vita writes herself as a male (Sebastian) and thus is able to inherit the home/palace she loved so much (knole/chevron), and details how different she was than her parents, how ready for change, how much she longed for more than what society forced her to be while also deeply loving her ancestral home and some of its traditions.
Overall, a wonderful historical fiction piece set at a time of flux in British society, written by a keen and witty observer of people who had one foot in the circle she writes about, and one foot out, exploring the new society her peers had so much disdain for.
It’s kind of in conversation with “Orlando,” in that Vita writes herself as a male (Sebastian) and thus is able to inherit the home/palace she loved so much (knole/chevron), and details how different she was than her parents, how ready for change, how much she longed for more than what society forced her to be while also deeply loving her ancestral home and some of its traditions.
Overall, a wonderful historical fiction piece set at a time of flux in British society, written by a keen and witty observer of people who had one foot in the circle she writes about, and one foot out, exploring the new society her peers had so much disdain for.
November 17, 2017
This novel concerns the intellectual and emotional awakening of Sebastian, Duke of Chevron, during the last days of the Edwardian era, in the decade before WWI. Sebastian is just nineteen when the book opens, and thus just entering the youthful part of his adulthood. A member of high society, he is surrounded by frivolous, licentious people who prize good behaviour and maintenance of position and image above all else. The main issuer of the novel is whether or not Sebastian will follow the model of high society, as illustrated by his mother Lucy and her friends, or strike out in a more independent and authentic direction, like the one his quiet and smart sister Viola eventually chooses. The story is bookended by the appearances of Leonard Anquetil, an unconventional explorer, adventurer, and free spirit, who first causes Sebastian to question and doubt the lifestyle of his peers and sows the seeds of independence and authenticity in him. I wish that there had been more of Leonard and Viola as a foil for Sebastian and Lucy.
Sackville-West's prose glitters in a way that made this book a delight to read. She also shows a fairly balanced view of early 20th century British high society, revealing both its glory and luxury as well as its banality and hypocrisy. Her depiction makes it completely clear why Sebastian wishes to rebel yet finds it very hard to disentangle himself.
Sackville-West's prose glitters in a way that made this book a delight to read. She also shows a fairly balanced view of early 20th century British high society, revealing both its glory and luxury as well as its banality and hypocrisy. Her depiction makes it completely clear why Sebastian wishes to rebel yet finds it very hard to disentangle himself.
August 2, 2021
The Edwardians describes the end of an era, the collapse of the remnants of the feudal system in England. Looking back from 1930, after the crushing effects of the First World War, Vita Sackville-West pinpoints the reign of King Edward VII, which lasted only nine years, as the tipping point. The English class system was undergoing massive changes: workers were no longer eager to work the lands of the peerage as other opportunities presented themselves, the income tax had stuck its nose under the tent, and the younger aristocracy was less interested in the roles, privileges, and hypocrisy of their elders. At least that's how Sackville-West presents it writing of her class (her father was a baron, not a duke as in the story) and times. She creates a catalog, practically an encyclopedia of upper crust England in the first decade of the 20th Century. This novel should be studied in history classes. While describing the habits and customs of the peers in detail, she adds a plot with just enough gossip, scandal, and titillation (our hero "dates" his way through the classes) to keep the reader's attention. Very reminiscent of Downton Abbey, but with less emotional involvement.
March 9, 2015
The Edwardians was written by Vita Sackville West as a sort of joke, one she kept Virginia Woolf updated on through her letters whilst writing it. Published by the Hogarth Press in 1930 it was an instant success, although was not taken very seriously by its author – and in later years she apparently disliked hearing it praised. In her superb introduction to this edition, Victoria Glendinning explains why the publication of Woolf’s Orlando – which had flattered and excited Vita – was the inspiration for The Edwardians in which Vita exploits “the lavish, feudal, traditional world of her Edwardian childhood at Knole”.
Full review: https://heavenali.wordpress.com/2015/...
Full review: https://heavenali.wordpress.com/2015/...
March 6, 2014
Among the many problems which beset the novelist, not the least weighty is the choice of the moment at which to begin his novel.
I had only a few pages left to read when I set this aside last Autumn. Didn't want to abandon entirely but didn't have much eagerness for carrying on. No doubt this is must for those who like to delve into London's geometric society but it really has been a chore for me.
It gets 2* only because I (finally) finished
I had only a few pages left to read when I set this aside last Autumn. Didn't want to abandon entirely but didn't have much eagerness for carrying on. No doubt this is must for those who like to delve into London's geometric society but it really has been a chore for me.
It gets 2* only because I (finally) finished
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 31, 2017
Creo que me ha gustado todavía más que All passion spent. Es un retrato maravilloso de una época, tan real que parece que lo estés viendo y además con la ventaja de saber que unos pocos años después ese mundo llegará a su fin a causa de la I Guerra Mundial. Me ha recordado a El gato pardo (aunque no se parece nada), pero esa sensación de decadencia de... no sé. Recomendable 100%
August 26, 2014
I'm not sure why I so disliked this... it should have been right up my alley. Wrong book at the wrong time?
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