The Age of Innocence
Edith Wharton · 1862–1937 · USA
Why it matters
Newland Archer between the bride convention chose and the woman who would have been a life. The first Pulitzer awarded a woman: renunciation anatomized with irony that spares no one, least of all the reader.
At a glance
tragedyromance
Difficulty 4/10medium pace301 pagesWharton's irony is subtle, but the prose itself moves smoothly and clearly.
Deep dive
Newland Archer spends thirty years mourning a woman he could have chosen. Why Wharton waits until the final page to find out whether freedom, when it finally arrives unforced, is something he still actually wants.
Where to go next
Edith Wharton · 1905The House of MirthLvl 5Medium pace
Henry James · 1881The Portrait of a LadyLvl 6Slow burn
Willa Cather · 1918My ÁntoniaLvl 3Medium pace
Thomas Hardy · 1891Tess of the d'UrbervillesLvl 4Medium pace
Gustave Flaubert · 1857Madame BovaryLvl 5Slow burn
James Baldwin · 1956Giovanni's RoomLvl 5Medium pace