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3.5 

The Edwardians

By Vita Sackville-West
The Edwardians by Vita Sackville-West digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

An instant bestseller when it was published in 1930, this glittering satire of Edwardian high society features a privileged brother and sister torn between tradition and a chance at an independent life.

Sebastian is young, handsome, moody, and the heir to Chevron, a vast and opulent ducal estate. He feels a deep love for the countryside and for his patrimony, but he loathes the frivolous social world his mother and her shallow friends represent. At one of his mother’s decadent house parties, Sebastian meets two people who shake his sense of self: Leonard Anquetil, a lowborn arctic explorer, who questions his mode of living; and Lady Roehampton, a married society beauty with a string of lovers, who breaks his heart. When Sebastian reaches the brink of despair, it is his self-possessed younger sister, Viola, who opens for them both a gateway to another world.

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34 Reviews

3.5
Thumbs Up“It was a good book, showing different themes of the time. I didn't really love any of the characters, though, and got bored at some points. I also didn't love the different characters for different chapters, it didn't flow very well”
“I really enjoyed this one! Entertaining and very funny in it's criticism. It is written in a very light and easy style that works perfectly for the novel while also remaining very well crafted. I just picked it up after reading Orlando by Virginia Woolf (knowing that Woolf dedicated it to Sackville-West and it is inspired by Vita's family history) and it was very interesting to put them into dialogue with each other”
“For those that read reviews to determine if you should pick up a book, The Edwardians reads like a season in Downton Abbey. The novel begins in 1905-06 and ends in 1911. The story follows Sebastian's exploration of becoming an adult (not coming of age) during the Edwardian period. West looks at the value system, morals, life-style, societal rituals etc of a nobleman during this period. West wanted to highlight the changing world juxtaposed against the dying Victorian and turn of the century world. It was an excellent novel and well-written. West's ability to recreate her world, that she grew up in, is amazing, and I loved the topics she explored. This is my second Sackville-West novel in the last 6 weeks, and I will definitely look into reading her other works.”

About Vita Sackville-West

VITA SACKVILLE-WEST (1892-1962) was a writer and poet born in England to aristocratic parents. In 1913, she married diplomat Harold Nicolson and traveled extensively before settling in 1930 at Sissinghurst Castle, where she designed a world-famous garden. Sackville-West had an affair with Virginia Woolf and was the model for the protagonist of Woolf’s Orlando. She is best known for her novels, including The Edwardians and All Passion Spent.

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