Tony and Brenda Last and their son, John Andrew, live an idyllic life in the huge Victorian house that is the symbol of Tony's family pride. The chance arrival of a penniless scrounger irrevocably shatters the gentle balance of their lives.

This engaging introduction shows how ideas of aristocracy originated in ancient times, were transformed in the middle ages, and have only fallen apart over the last two centuries.

Set in late nineteenth-century Russia, a Russian aristocrat returns home after a long absence and learns her family fortune has been squandered and she may have to sell her mansion and the beloved cherry orchard.

"Depicting the gradual disintegration of the aristocratic Compson family through four fractured narratives, this novel explores intense, passionate family relationships where there is no love, only self-centeredness. It features some of the most memorable characters in literature: beautiful, rebellious Caddy; the manchild Benjy; haunted, neurotic Quentin; Jason, the brutal cynic; and Dilsey, their Black servant. Their lives fragmented and harrowed...

""In all ways a great novel, a nonstop pleasure brimming with charm, personal wisdom, and philosophic insight. This book more than fulfills the promise of Towles' stylish debut, Rules of Civility." - Kirkus Reviews (starred) From the New York Times bestselling author of Rules of Civility--a transporting novel about a man who is ordered to spend the rest of his life inside a luxury hotel With his breakout debut novel, Rules of Civility, Amor Towles...

Hans, a foundling raised by a grave robber, helps Countess Angela Gabriela, nearly thirteen, when she is torn away from her dream of being a professional puppeteer by an evil archduke out to destroy her and her parents.

"According to Confucius, "an educated woman is a worthless woman," but Tan Yunxian--born into an elite family, yet haunted by death, separations, and loneliness--is being raised by her grandparents to be of use. Her grandmother is one of only a handful of female doctors in China, and she teaches Yunxian the pillars of Chinese medicine, the Four Examinations--looking, listening, touching, and asking--something a man can never do with a female patient....

In 1930s England, Tony and Brenda Last and their son, John Andrew, live an idyllic life in the huge Victorian country house that is the symbol of Tony's family pride. The chance arrival of a penniless scrounger irrevocably shatters the gentle balance of their lives as Brenda's search for excitement and Tony's determination to hold on to what is his eventually lead in the direction of divorce and send Tony to South America.

". . . 'When the United States Spoke French' offers a fresh perspective on the tumultuous years of America as a young nation, when the Atlantic world's first republican experiments were put to the test. François Furstenberg explores the country's formative period in the 1790s from the viewpoint of five distinguished Frenchmen who took refuge in America after leaving their homes and families, crossing the Atlantic, and landing in Philadelphia. Through...