Connecting with The Custom of the Country

I came across this little gem of a quote while reading The Diary of a Nobody in January and it gave me pause to think.

Last summer, I was entrenched in Edith Wharton, reading The House of Mirth, The Age of Innocence, The Buccaneers, and (of course) The Custom of the Country. And if you've ever read Edith Wharton before, you know her life was the exact opposite. Edith Wharton's real life was all about society and being seen in it, and she traded on that insider's knowledge in many of her novels.

And The Custom of the Country could very likely be considered her swan song to Gilded Age society in America. Shortly before writing it in 1913, Edith Wharton moved to Europe (c. 1910) and lived there until her death in 1937.

Before You Begin

Before you begin The Custom of the Country, I want to invite you to get to know the author a little better by clicking here and here and here and here. 

I think by understanding who Edith Wharton was as a person will help you connect more with her writing, especially so with The Custom of the Country - the most controversial book we've read inside our Monthly Book Box community.

After You Finish

Congrats! You finished the most controversial book we've read together inside the Monthly Book Box community!

To read our Parting Thoughts, click here.

To see what others thought about Undine Spragg, click here and click here.

To find out who our most relatable characters were, click here.