Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.
Loading... The Ambassadors (original 1903; edition 1982)by Henry James (Author)
Work InformationThe Ambassadors by Henry James (1903)
Unread books (79) » 21 more 20th Century Literature (280) Favourite Books (818) 1,001 BYMRBYD Concensus (243) Favorite Long Books (204) Folio Society (603) Art of Reading (65) Edward Gorey Covers (19) SHOULD Read Books! (259) Loading...
Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Challenging to read as Henry James gives nothing away. Yet, a lesson in subtle interactions and reading between the lines. ( ) Protagonist Lewis Lambert Strether agrees to travel to Paris to attempt to convince his fiancée’s wayward son, Chad, to return to the US to run the family business. What he finds in Paris is different than expected. Chad is a pleasant young man who has been positively influenced by his associations with a woman and her daughter. Strether meets the two and comes to enjoy their company. A new set of “ambassadors” is sent by his fiancée when Strether fails to obtain the desired action. Over the course of the story, Strether gradually changes his point of view, which in turn, changes what he values in life. “His greatest uneasiness seemed to peep at him out of the imminent impression that almost any acceptance of Paris might give one’s authority away. It hung before him this morning, the vast bright Babylon, like some huge iridescent object, a jewel brilliant and hard, in which parts were not to be discriminated nor difference comfortably marked. It twinkled and trembled and melted together, and what seemed all surface one moment seemed all depth the next.” Published in 1903, it was originally written as a serial in the North American Review. I think I may have appreciated it more if I had read it in its original form. As a novel, the primary drawback is that it does not flow very well, and there are many lengthy circuitous sentences. I did not enjoy it quite as much as James’s Portrait of a Lady, which I recommend reading ahead of this one, but overall, I enjoyed it and found it worth my time. no reviews | add a review
Belongs to Publisher SeriesIs contained inContainsInspiredHas as a commentary on the textHas as a student's study guideDistinctionsNotable Lists
Lambert Strether, a mild, middle-aged American of no particular achievements, is dispatched to Paris from the manufacturing empire of Woollett, Massachusetts. The mission conferred on him by his august patron, Mrs. Newsome, is to discover what, or who, is keeping her son Chad in the notorious city of pleasure and to bring him home. But Strether finds Chad transformed by the influence of a remarkable woman. And as the Parisian spring advances, he himself succumbs to the allure of the "vast bright Babylon" and to the mysterious charm of Madame de Vionnet. No library descriptions found. |
Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.4Literature English (North America) American fiction Later 19th Century 1861-1900LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. Penguin AustraliaAn edition of this book was published by Penguin Australia. Tantor MediaAn edition of this book was published by Tantor Media. Urban RomanticsAn edition of this book was published by Urban Romantics. |