An aging American inventor, settled in the English countryside after the Great War, watches over his fragile younger daughter while keeping his estranged elder daughter?a princess trapped in a ruinous marriage?at arm?s length. When a steady, one-armed veteran asks for the younger woman?s hand, the old man?s carefully maintained peace begins to crack, and buried grievances between father and daughters surface with devastating force.In the companion novella, a very different household comes under scrutiny. A timid, self-effacing woman endures years of quiet domination by those around her, bending to every demand until the cumulative weight of small surrenders threatens to crush what little selfhood she has left. As pressure mounts from family and circumstance alike, she must decide whether the habit of submission is a shelter?or a slow destruction.Together these two novellas form a sharp-eyed study of power, weakness, and the hidden violence of family loyalty, written with the psychological acuity that would later make their author one of the most acclaimed British novelists of the twentieth century.
An aging American inventor, settled in the English countryside after the Great War, watches over his fragile younger daughter while keeping his estranged elder daughter?a princess trapped in a ruinous marriage?at arm?s length. When a steady, one-armed veteran asks for the younger woman?s hand, the old man?s carefully maintained peace begins to crack, and buried grievances between father and daughters surface with devastating force.In the companion novella, a very different household comes under scrutiny. A timid, self-effacing woman endures years of quiet domination by those around her, bending to every demand until the cumulative weight of small surrenders threatens to crush what little selfhood she has left. As pressure mounts from family and circumstance alike, she must decide whether the habit of submission is a shelter?or a slow destruction.Together these two novellas form a sharp-eyed study of power, weakness, and the hidden violence of family loyalty, written with the psychological acuity that would later make their author one of the most acclaimed British novelists of the twentieth century.
Barnes & Noble is the world’s largest retail bookseller and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products. Our Nook Digital business offers a lineup of NOOK® tablets and e-Readers and an expansive collection of digital reading content through the NOOK Store®. Barnes & Noble’s mission is to operate the best omni-channel specialty retail business in America, helping both our customers and booksellers reach their aspirations, while being a credit to the communities we serve.
