Reviews

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

deleonicaa's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

andrealc23's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

beckychristina's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A splendidly slow and indulgent read, it’s incredibly vivid and emotive. So deeply rich, I imagine I’d need multiple read-throughs to appreciate each detail. 

mozbolt's review against another edition

5.0

This might become one of my favorite classics. It tore my heart out in the best way.

acmarinho3's review against another edition

5.0

"Era esta a maneira como a velha Nova Iorque levava a vida "sem efusão de sangue"; a maneira dessa gente que temia o escândalo mais que a doença, que colocava a decência acima da coragem e considerava que um sintoma máximo de má educação eram as "cenas", para já não falar do comportamento daqueles que lhes davam origem."

"Sabia que numa coisa havia falhado: a flor da vida. Mas, agora, considerava-a uma coisa tão inatingível e improvável que lamentar-se seria o mesmo que ficar desesperado por não ter ganho o primeiro prémio da lotaria."

Para além de ser um retrato extremamente interessante da sociedade americana, apresenta-nos um personagem absolutamente fenomenal: Archer. Um homem que no meio das suas fraquezas se manteve o marido fiel, reprimindo os seus sentimentos e partilhando com o leitor os seus dilemas. Desejamos que ele quebre a corrente logo no início e seja feliz, e sofremos com ele quando não o faz.
É um livro muito bem escrito, com passagem lindíssimas e pensamentos absolutamente fabulosos sobre a vida, o amor e as nossas decisões.

phobosorbiter's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

ellis459's review against another edition

4.0

Captivating Guilded Age story, filled with timeless melancholy.

rebeccamadsn's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

cmward's review against another edition

4.0

Very interesting satire of polite society with an unreliable narrator

- for someone so sure of knowing his wife's every thought, he certainly missed her catching his affair! Which makes you think that half the people he describes as conventional and bland have in fact a lot more going on than you are lead to believe...

 

doctorwithoutboundaries's review against another edition

5.0

“In reality they all lived in a kind of hieroglyphic world, where the real thing was never said or done or even thought, but only represented by a set of arbitrary signs.”

This novel contains multitudes; only an astute reader can dig through the layers to reveal the treasure beneath. A Pulitzer Prize winner, this is nothing short of a masterpiece, clever right from the title to every last bit of calculated dialogue that I can only expect from [a: Edith Wharton|16|Edith Wharton|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1484512230p2/16.jpg]. Few writers have been capable of such keen psychological insight and mastery of subtext.

On the surface, the story of a man who must choose between convention and passion, but through the premise, Wharton uses her unparalleled wit and sophisticated understanding to skewer the mores of the time, and shows us how her characters were trapped by their wealth and status in a rigid system of unspoken traditions. The movie adaptation starring Daniel Day Lewis, Winona Ryder and Michelle Pfeiffer does an accomplished job of capturing this struggle.

This "Novel of Manners" is the perfect read for those who like a good period drama. Wharton recreates late 19th century high society vividly, and even through dry irony, betrays pity for those characters who are forced to lead stifled lives. Fans of [a: Jane Austen|1265|Jane Austen|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1651510251p2/1265.jpg] will enjoy both this and my personal favourite of Wharton's novels: [b: The House of Mirth|17728|The House of Mirth|Edith Wharton|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1328729186l/17728._SY75_.jpg|1652564]. A feminist before feminism was a thing, a writer far ahead of her time, known for classics that still feel fresh, Edith Wharton deserves to be read by all.