The House of Mirth (Abridged) Audiobook

" It sorta grew on me by the end, but getting through it was painful. "

" Edith Wharton is an amazing author. Can't wait to read more. This book with such a boring title caught me in the beginning and kept me glued with the passing of each chapter. "

" I really enjoyed this book and Wharton's writing style. Lily Bart is a tragic heroine who just couldn't seem to catch a break. It gives you an honest, dark view of high society in the 1900s. I recommend to people who think they would enjoy a more cynical, less happy (more American) Austen story. "

" I found the ending somehow pathetic, otherwise the book would have been perfect. "

" Love Wharton's writing, although as she was a privileged intellectual the anti-semitism in the book was a bit surprising. Loved Ethan Frome; Age of Innocence is on my 'maybe someday' list. "

" Oh, my. This was incredibly depressing, but extremely well-written. At times you wanted to shake Lily and at others you wanted to hug her. A great work in the canon of American literature. "

" Well written, but I had a hard time finding a charactor that I could sympathize with. "

" Great slice of life of New York high society in the 1900's. "

" Did not like the ending. "

" 3 stars for telling instead of showing, otherwise a 4-star book. Not the author's fault (obviously!) but a reflection of how my tastes have evolved over the years. I particularly loved the characterization; absolutely perfect. "

" Alas, this wasn't as gripping the second time around. But on a sentence level, still dominant as hell. "

" Terribly sad - and you know it would have been worse if she hadn't had moneyed friends. "

" One of my all time favorites. Lily Bart is a woman before her time trapped in a society that has a completely different path chosen for her. "

" This book totally broke my heart. "

" I primarily enjoyed this book for it's depiction of high society in the late 1800s. I am glad I read it, however, it swung from being very difficult to put down to just slightly better than what is required for me to continue reading. "

" Outstanding. Objective, yet empathic towards all her characters. So well written and surprisingly contemporary. "

" A difficult book to get through, but the opulence and sense of entitlement seemed completely plausible and fascinating. I was sad that things ended so tragically. "

" As appealing as it may have read at some other time, it just doesn't resonate today. "

" I thought this book was okay. The main character was so wishy washy that I was constantly yelling at her in my head throughout this book. "

" Who doesn't love a book about the lives of the upper class? "

" Holy crap, what a story. And a vocab lesson, in the best possible way. Edith Wharton is one of those authors I categorized in college as being too second wave, but I was wrong, she was her own wave, and Ms. Bart brings it home in a stunning way. "

" it was boring long and the end was throughly disapointing. "

" Loved it! I can't believe it took me until age 32 to read Edith Wharton...Poor Lily. "

" MY. FAVORITE. BOOK. EVER. So complicated, yet so simple. I have read this book more than ten times and loved it more each time. Still extremely relevant, as Lily Bart struggles against the limitations on women's choices and refuses to accept compromises until it is too late. Triumphant. "

" Wharton is just brilliant. I love her individual sentences. This particular story has a dark bite, but I adored reading it. Although I knew the premise of the story, the way she brings everything about wasn't expected, though felt natural. "

" Beautifully written but what a depressing read. Unfortunately, there was little redeeming about the protagonist, Lily Bart. I much preferred "Age of Innocence." "

" For me, this is one of those books that can only be appreciated after reflection. While reading it - I hated it. "

" Loved it. I think Lily purposely took her life. Life was just too dismal and she didn't see in hope. "