Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours
Read: August 18, 2013
For fans of The Paris Wife, a sparkling glimpse into the life of Edith Wharton and the scandalous love affair that threatened her closest friendship. They say that behind every great man is a great woman. Behind Edith Wharton, there was Anna Bahlmann—her governess turned literary secretary and confidante. At the age of forty-five, despite her growing fame, Edith remains unfulfilled in a lonely, sexless marriage. Against all the rules of Gilded Age society, she falls in love with Morton Fullerton, a dashing young journalist. But their scandalous affair threatens everything in Edith’s life—especially her abiding ties to Anna. At a moment of regained popularity for Wharton, Jennie Fields brilliantly interweaves Wharton’s real letters and diary entries with her fascinating, untold love story. Told through the points of view of both Edith and Anna, The Age of Desire transports readers to the golden days of Wharton’s turn-of-the century world and—like the recent bestseller The Chaperone - effortlessly re-creates the life of an unforgettable woman.
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| Edith Wharton |
I think one of the greatest challenges in making this story work lay in recreating a world before the success of the women's rights movement. I mean, we've all read the history books and can recite the injustices off the cuff, but can we really claim to understand the mentality of the period? By and large, I think the answer is no which leads me to the extraordinary efforts put forth by Fields in this piece.
Edith's emotional and sexual awakening is the heart of this novel. Morality aside I loved watching this character come into her own understanding of womanhood and the way that journey reminded me how fortunate I am to live in a time and place that encourages women to be embrace and enjoy their femininity.
Another great thing about this book is the contrast between Edith and Anna. These women have very different values and views of the world. Telling the story through both balanced the piece very nicely, but it also allowed readers to really explore and understand the depth, intricacy and complexity of the friendship that existed between the two.
Not finding much to appreciate in Teddy or Fullerton, I was at first concerned by my lack of enthusiasm for the men in Edith's life, but as I continued to read, as Fields' thesis began to come through, I realized they themselves weren't all that important. This wasn't in any way their story.
Taking inspiration from Edith's own letters, The Age of Desire is an elegantly luxurious tale of devotion, passion and the changing conventions of the early twentieth century.
Not finding much to appreciate in Teddy or Fullerton, I was at first concerned by my lack of enthusiasm for the men in Edith's life, but as I continued to read, as Fields' thesis began to come through, I realized they themselves weren't all that important. This wasn't in any way their story.
Taking inspiration from Edith's own letters, The Age of Desire is an elegantly luxurious tale of devotion, passion and the changing conventions of the early twentieth century.
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"When a person has a different sense of right and wrong, what does it matter? When the man I love no longer thinks I am enough, what does it matter? When we live in a time where sin is more delicious than loyalty, what does it matter?"
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Check out all the stops on Jennie Fields' The Age of Desire Virtual Book Tour
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