Madame de Treymes follows the fortunes of two innocents abroad: Fanny Frisbee of New York, unhappily married to the dissolute Marquis de Malrive, scion of a great house of the Faubourg St. Germain; and John Durham, her childhood friend, who arrives in Paris intent on persuading Fanny to divorce her husband and marry him instead. A scintillating picture of American and French society at the turn of the century, it is also a subtle investigation of the clash of cultures and the role of women in the social hierarchy.
This edition also includes the novellas Sanctuary and Bunner Sisters, two short works rich in the social satire and cunning insight that characterized Wharton’s acclaimed novels The House of Mirth and The Age of Innocence.
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"Four excellent Wharton novellas covering a range of moral dilemmas and Wharton's usual scathing indictments of social pretensions. "The Bunner Sisters" was especially heartbreaking."
— Karen (4 out of 5 stars)
“Madame de Treymes is marvelously well executed…the work of a master craftsman, one who retains the older pride in the temper and delicacy of tools an to whom marketability is no test of excellence.”
— Atlantic Monthly“It is a great pity that the race of novelists do not follow the example of Edith Wharton…She knows how to leave out the little more which means failure and to include the little less which means success.”
— Evening Sun“Wharton writes with wit and with distinction. All her work has quality; it bears the mark of a personality, and accordingly should be read.”
— Academy“Mrs. Wharton has written a short story which stands entirely above criticism.”
— Bookman“Listeners are treated to characters they can relate to amid themes of love, loyalty and loss.”
— AudioFile" Overall this collection was excellent and very thought provoking. I love the examination of morality, ethics, hypocrisy, and love. "
— Laura, 1/18/2013" I've read the title novella in this 4 novella collection, and really liked it. Wharton is a master at creating suspense in these fraught social situations. "
— Ashley, 5/30/2010Edith Wharton (1862–1937) is the author of the novels The Age of Innocence and Old New York, both of which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. She was the first woman to receive that honor. In 1929 she was awarded the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Fiction. She was born in New York and is best known for her stories of life among the upper-class society into which she was born. She was educated privately at home and in Europe. In 1894 she began writing fiction, and her novel The House of Mirth established her as a leading writer.
Kate Fleming (a.k.a. Anna Fields) (1965–2006), winner of more than a dozen Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award in 2004, was one of the most respected narrators in the industry. Trained at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, she was also a director, producer, and technician at her own studio, Cedar House Audio.