Reading the 20th Century discussion

The most recent episode of the Backlisted Podcast is about Edith Wharton, and specifically, it being Halloween soon, her ghost stories.

I was not really aware of her Ghost stories however the enthusiasm of the podcast contributors convinced me to give them my attention. Perhaps a buddy read this time next year?

So, what better excuse for a dedicated Edith Wharton discussion thread?

Let's talk Edith Wharton

More about Edith Wharton...


Edith Newbold Jones was born into such wealth and privilege that her family inspired the phrase "keeping up with the Joneses." The youngest of three children, Edith spent her early years touring Europe with her parents and, upon the family's return to the United States, enjoyed a privileged childhood in New York and Newport, Rhode Island. Edith's creativity and talent soon became obvious: By the age of eighteen she had written a novella, (as well as witty reviews of it) and published poetry in the Atlantic Monthly.

After a failed engagement, Edith married a wealthy sportsman, Edward Wharton. Despite similar backgrounds and a shared taste for travel, the marriage was not a success. Many of Wharton's novels chronicle unhappy marriages, in which the demands of love and vocation often conflict with the expectations of society. Wharton's first major novel, The House of Mirth, published in 1905, enjoyed considerable literary success. Ethan Frome appeared six years later, solidifying Wharton's reputation as an important novelist. Often in the company of her close friend, Henry James, Wharton mingled with some of the most famous writers and artists of the day, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, André Gide, Sinclair Lewis, Jean Cocteau, and Jack London.

In 1913 Edith divorced Edward. She lived mostly in France for the remainder of her life. When World War I broke out, she organized hostels for refugees, worked as a fund-raiser, and wrote for American publications from battlefield frontlines. She was awarded the French Legion of Honor for her courage and distinguished work.

The Age of Innocence, a novel about New York in the 1870s, earned Wharton the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1921 -- the first time the award had been bestowed upon a woman. Wharton traveled throughout Europe to encourage young authors. She also continued to write, lying in her bed every morning, as she had always done, dropping each newly penned page on the floor to be collected and arranged when she was finished. Wharton suffered a stroke and died on August 11, 1937. She is buried in the American Cemetery in Versailles, France.

- Barnesandnoble.com

More about the Backlisted Podcast I mention in the first post....


78. EDITH WHARTON - GHOSTS

OCTOBER 29, 2018

In this special Hallowe’en episode Andy & John are joined by Lissa Evans, writer, producer, director and author of three children’s book and five novels, including most recently, Old Baggage, a book which Andy recently praised here. This is Lissa’s third Backlisted appearance - she was on the very first episode discussing J.L. Carr’s A Month in the Country and later on the episode featuring Patrick Hamilton’s The Slaves of Solitude. She is joined by Andrew Male, senior associate editor of Mojo magazine who writes about film, radio and TV for Sight and Sound and Sunday Times ‘Culture’. If Backlisted had a resident ghost it would surely be Andrew – this is his fourth time of haunting: as well as the episode on Raymond Chandler’s The High Window, he featured on both previous Hallowe’en editions discussing Robert Aickman and Shirley Jackson. The book under discussion in this episode is Edith Wharton’s Ghosts, a collection she selected and introduced herself and which was published posthumously in 1934. Before that, Andy is puzzled and amused by Daphne Du Maurier’s last and weirdly prophetic ‘Brexit’ novel Rule Britannia and John enjoys Alan Garner’s recently published memoir, Where Shall We Run To? (published by Fourth Estate).

Books mentioned:

Daphne Du Maurier - Rule Britannia; I’ll Never Be Young Again
Alan Garner – Where Shall We Run To?; The Stone Book Quartet; The Voice That Thunders
Edith Wharton – Ghost Stories (Wordsworth); Ghost Stories (Virago); The Stories of Edith Wharton (selected and introduced by Anita Brookner); The Age of Innocence (introduced by Penelope Lively); The Custom of the Country; The House of Mirth; Ethan Frome; A Backward Glance (memoir)
Richard Dalby (ed) – The Virago Book of Ghost Stories
Sarah Perry - Melmoth
William Peter Blatty - The Exorcist
M.R. James – Ghost Stories (edited by Roger Luckhurst)
Christopher Ricks - Keats & Embarrasment; T.S. Eliot & Prejudice
J.B. Priestley - An Inspector Calls

https://www.backlisted.fm

So has anyone read The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton?


If so, what's your verdict?

Andy, in the Podcast, explains there are various compilations of her ghost work but no definitive collection. They reference a Virago collection and a Wordworth collection.

I have only read one of her ghost stories, Afterward: A Ghost Story for Christmas which I read recently and enjoyed. My favourite story of hers is Xingu which is another short story and very clever, https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..., another short story. The only novel of hers I've read so far is The Age of Innocence.
some of her ghost stories are available on Project Gutenberg.http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/4514.

Thanks Tania - Afterward does indeed sound good.


I'm definitely up for reading some of her ghost stories, perhaps this time next year. So, if anyone else wants to get involved, let's do it.

I guarantee that listening to the podcast will inspire you.

I have not read her Ghost Stories, although it is on my wish list. I would definitely be up for a buddy read for it next year, and for anything else members would want to read. Her The Age of Innocence is on my (fictitious) top ten all time. I am not a re-reader, but would happily reread that title.

She writes of the world she knew, so mostly the monied class, and mostly New York City, although there are exceptions. Ethan Frome is one such exception, as is Summer.

Wharton was in France during WWI, and for her contribution to the war effort was awarded France's Chevalier of the Legion of Honor.

Just that section from wikipedia's article on Wharton:

Throughout the war she worked tirelessly in charitable efforts for refugees, the injured, the unemployed, and the displaced. She was a "heroic worker on behalf of her adopted country".[49] On April 18, 1916, the President of France appointed her Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, the country's highest award, in recognition of her dedication to the war effort.[50][51] Her relief work included setting up workrooms for unemployed French women, organizing concerts to provide work for musicians, raising tens of thousands of dollars for the war effort, and opening tuberculosis hospitals. In 1915 Wharton edited The Book of the Homeless, which included essays, art, poetry and musical scores by many major contemporary European and American artists, including Henry James, Joseph Conrad, William Dean Howells, Anna de Noailles, Jean Cocteau and Walter Gay, among others. Wharton proposed the book to her publisher, Scribner's. She handled all of the business arrangements, lined up contributors, and translated the French entries into English. Theodore Roosevelt wrote a two-page Introduction in which he praised Wharton's effort and urged Americans to support the war.

She has a couple of titles that take place in France.

I'm also a Wharton fan: I re-read her The House of Mirth earlier this year but would certainly join a buddy read of any of her other books.

Thanks Elizabeth and Roman Clodia - great to learn of your enthusiasm for her work

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Wharton was in France during WWI, and for her contribution to the war effort was awarded France's Chevalier of the Legion of Honor."

That came up in the podcast - clearly an extraordinary human being

Nigeyb wrote: " ... clearly an extraordinary human being "

Her ability to recognize the humanness of all of us comes through in her writing.

I have read The Age of Innocence, The Glimpses of the Moon and Xingu. I thoroughly enjoyed the last 2 but Age of Innocence started to drag for me. I think that's because I watched the movie first so I knew what was coming. I probably would have enjoyed it much more if I had not already seen the movie. I would definitely recommend Xingu for a quick enjoyable read. Its free on Kindle in the US. I have been meaning to read some more Wharton so a buddy read would be great.

I love her writing and have read quite a few of her novels but am not sure if I’ve read many of her ghost stories. I do remember that Afterwards was very good.

Judy wrote: "I do remember that Afterwards was very good."

I don't recognize that title.

Looking at a bibliography of an author as prolific as Wharton is more difficult on GR than other places. Here is the link at Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_W...

I meant Afterward, the ghost story mentioned earlier in this thread, but added a rogue ‘s’.

Judy wrote: "I meant Afterward, the ghost story mentioned earlier in this thread, but added a rogue ‘s’."

Aha! The individual story titles had already moved to an inaccessible memory location.

Haha, I know the feeling.

I read a couple of her WWI stories, years ago Ethan Frome in school (ugh) and am still, occasionally, trying to read Age of Innocence. I've provably been working on it for 15-20 years. It just seems to drag for me.

I have never read her. Obviously, there are lots of collections of her stories. I found, The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton which includes the stories:

The Lady's Maid's Bell
The Eyes
Afterward
Kerfol
The Triumph of Night
Miss Mary Pask
Bewitched
Mr Jones
Pomegranate Seed
The Looking Glass
All Souls'

We have learnt that short stories are difficult, with Agatha Christie in particular, with US volumes having different stories included and, often, different titles.

Susan wrote: "We have learnt that short stories are difficult, with Agatha Christie in particular, with US volumes having different stories included and, often, different titles."

Or when the author himself reissues titles substituting titles along the way. See this publication history of Thomas Hardy's Wessex Tales.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wessex_...

I could be wrong, but I think Wharton's Ghost Stories collections include all the same titles.

That's good, Elizabeth.

Nigeyb wrote:


"In about 2 weeks I’ll post a nominations thread to choose our July 2026 group read. Next up is a 20th Century Classic, so a book published in the 20th Century and a which is now regarded as a classic

Any initial thoughts?"


After my success with E.M. Forster, who'd I'd inexplicably never read, I'm musing about other revered 20th century writers who I've similarly never read and alighted upon Edith Wharton

I notice we've read a couple of her books but never The Age of Innocence, which may well be because everyone else has read it multiple times

In any event, I'll be reading it at some point soon

Would there be any enthusiasm for The Age of Innocence (1920) as a group read nomination and/or a buddy read?



The return of the beautiful Countess Olenska into the rigidly conventional society of New York sends reverberations throughout the upper reaches of society.

Newland Archer, an eligible young man of the establishment is about to announce his engagement to May Welland, a pretty ingénue, when May's cousin, Countess Olenska, is introduced into their circle. The Countess brings with her an aura of European sophistication and a hint of scandal, having left her husband and claimed her independence.

Her sorrowful eyes, her tragic worldliness and her air of unapproachability attract the sensitive Newland and, almost against their will, a passionate bond develops between them. But Archer's life has no place for passion and, with society on the side of May and all she stands for, he finds himself drawn into a bitter conflict between love and duty.

I *highly* recommend The Age of Innocence, Nigey! On the surface, it looks like a romance novel in the New York "high society" circles, but far from it. She exposes the duplicities and stifling effects of the social norms and public morality with her penetrating eye and satyrical bite. I loved everything about her writing from start to finish.

Thanks Vesna

The House of Mirth is the Wharton I most like, but sure, I'd join a buddy read (or group read should it be chosen) of The Age of Innocence. I've read very little if any Wharton that did not work for me.

The Age of Innocence is probably my second favorite book after Gatsby, so I would read it again with you all with great enthusiasm!

Me too, I love Wharton and it's been years since I last read Age of Innocence. Like G, House of Mirth might just be my favourite Wharton - I just sob through that end!

Roman Clodia wrote: "Me too, I love Wharton and it's been years since I last read Age of Innocence. Like G, House of Mirth might just be my favourite Wharton - I just sob through that end!"

Same

Please count me in. It's been on my to-read list for way too long.

Great news. Thanks for all your enthusiasm


I’ll add it to the schedule for July

Sonia wrote: "Roman Clodia wrote: "Me too, I love Wharton and it's been years since I last read Age of Innocence. Like G, House of Mirth might just be my favourite Wharton - I just sob through that end!"

Same"

Ditto. Most emotional ending to a book I think I've ever experienced. I doubt I'll have time for a re-read, but if not, will follow the thread with great interest!

Thanks again everyone - delighted there's so much interest in this buddy read and really looking forward to it


See you in July (or whenever). Here's the discussion....

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I have recently reread The Age of Innocence as well as House of Mirth, plus reading Summer, Ethan Frome and several short stories. I won't be rereading again but will be The Custom of the Country with another group most likely in June. While the novels are wonderful, I would like a good narrative nonfiction read that focuses on the New York wealth of the Gilded Age often featured in Wharton and James. There are a number out there and a few are mentioned in this link.
https://www.nypl.org/blog/2023/11/17/...

Anyone read anything they liked or recommend?