From one of the twentieth century’s most enduringly popular fiction writers: the only hardcover edition of his short stories.
Though W. Somerset Maugham was also famous for his novels and plays, it has been argued that in the short story he reached the pinnacle of his art. These expertly told tales, with their addictive plot twists and vividly drawn characters, are both galvanizing as literature and wonderfully entertaining. In the adventures of his alter ego Ashenden, a writer who (like Maugham himself) turned secret agent in World War I, as well as in stories set in such far-flung locales as South Pacific islands and colonial outposts in Southeast Asia, Maugham brings his characters vividly to life, and their humanity is more convincing for the author’s merciless exposure of their flaws and failures.
Whether the chasms of misunderstanding he plumbs are those between colonizers and natives, between a missionary and a prostitute, or between a poetry-writing woman and her uncomprehending husband, Maugham brilliantly displays his irony, his wit, and his genius in the art of storytelling.
Author: W. Somerset Maugham
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Everyman’s Library
Published: 07/06/2004
Series: Everyman’s Library Contemporary Classics
Pages: 880
Weight: 1.98lbs
Size: 8.26h x 5.22w x 1.80d
ISBN: 9781400042531
Language: English
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.