{"title":"W. Somerset Maugham","description":"W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) lived in Paris until he was ten. He was educated at King's School, Canterbury, and at Heidelberg University. He afterwards walked the wards of St. Thomas's Hospital with a view to practice in medicine, but the success of his first novel, Liza of Lambeth (1897), won him over to letters. Something of his hospital experience is reflected, however, in the first of his masterpieces, Of Human Bondage (1915), and with The Moon and Sixpence (1919) his reputation as a novelist was assured. His position as one of the most successful playwrights on the London stage was being consolidated simultaneously. His first play, A Man of Honour (1903), was followed by a procession of successes just before and after the First World War. (At one point only Bernard Shaw had more plays running at the same time in London.) His theatre career ended with Sheppey (1933). His fame as a short-story writer began with The Trembling of a Leaf, sub-titled Little Stories of the South Sea Islands, in 1921, after which he published more than ten collections. W. Somerset Maugham's general books are fewer in number. They include travel books, such as On a Chinese Screen (1922) and Don Fernando (1935), essays, criticism, and the self-revealing The Summing Up (1938) and A Writer's Notebook (1949). He became a Companion of Honour in 1954. Robert Calder is professor of English at the University of Saskatchewan.","products":[{"product_id":"the-magician-paperback","title":"The Magician - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMaugham's enchanting tale of secrets and fatal attraction\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Magician\u003c\/i\u003e is one of Somerset Maugham's most complex and perceptive novels. Running through it is the theme of evil, deftly woven into a story as memorable for its action as for its astonishingly vivid characters. In fin de siecle Paris, Arthur and Margaret are engaged to be married. Everyone approves and everyone seems to be enjoying themselves--until the sinister and repulsive Oliver Haddo appears. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50101525020895,"sku":"9780143104896","price":17.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/CpPCQ8qcVh9780143104896.webp?v=1781071657"},{"product_id":"liza-of-lambeth-paperback","title":"Liza of Lambeth - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eW. Somerset Maugham's first novel is about the gloomy, poverty-stricken world of South London in the 1890s and how it affects one young girl who tries to escape from it.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50101614018783,"sku":"9780140185935","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/beMSrjNBHB9780140185935.webp?v=1781071827"},{"product_id":"the-painted-veil-paperback","title":"The Painted Veil - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFirst serialized in 1924 and published as a complete novel in 1925, \"The Painted Veil\" is the powerful novel of transgression and redemption by popular and prolific British author W. Somerset Maugham. \"The Painted Veil\" tells the story of the lovely and superficial Kitty Garstin and her unhappy marriage to Walter Fane, a quiet and honorable man. Kitty agrees to marry Walter not because she loves him, but because she fears being upstaged by her younger sister. Kitty travels to Tching-Yen with her new husband, where he is posted as a government scientist, and Kitty soon falls in love with her husband's colleague, the handsome and charming Charlie Townsend. Walter is not as clueless about her behavior as Kitty would like to believe, and eventually rejected by her selfish lover, he has her travel with him to mainland China to help during a dangerous cholera epidemic. The experience utterly transforms Kitty and she begins to take responsibility for her mistakes and understand her shortcomings. Beautiful and deeply affecting, \"The Painted Veil\" is a thought-provoking study of the ability of people to change, grow, and learn how to love deeply. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50101634564319,"sku":"9781420972245","price":15.82,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/TDyP_zhdsy9781420972245.webp?v=1781071866"},{"product_id":"the-casuarina-tree-six-stories-paperback","title":"The Casuarina Tree: Six Stories - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"The Casuarina Tree: Six Stories\" is a masterful collection of short fiction by \u003cb\u003eW. Somerset Maugham\u003c\/b\u003e, capturing the complex lives of British colonials in the Malay Peninsula and Borneo. Through six distinct narratives, Maugham explores the tension, isolation, and moral ambiguity of expatriate life in Southeast Asia during the early 20th century.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe collection features some of Maugham's most celebrated stories, including \"The Letter\"-a gripping tale of crime and passion-and \"The Outstation,\" which examines the rigid social hierarchies and personal animosities of men stationed in remote outposts. Maugham's keen eye for human frailty is on full display as he delves into themes of infidelity, class consciousness, and the psychological toll of living in a foreign land. His prose is sharp and unsentimental, stripping away the romanticism of the colonial frontier to reveal the raw emotions and secrets hidden beneath the veneer of polite society.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCelebrated for its psychological depth and atmospheric setting, \"The Casuarina Tree: Six Stories\" remains a cornerstone of 20th-century literature, offering a profound and often chilling look at the intersections of culture, duty, and desire.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you may see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50101955526879,"sku":"9781025537634","price":33.05,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/qknJURXhPy9781025537634.webp?v=1781075961"},{"product_id":"cakes-and-ale-hardcover","title":"Cakes and Ale - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCake and Ale is a satirical novel of manners and a bildungsroman, infused with autobiographical reflection and literary criticism in narrative form. It belongs to that branch of early 20th-century English fiction that examines the literary establishment itself-its pretensions, moral codes, and hypocrisies. Maugham uses the device of a writer-narrator, William Ashenden, to blur the boundary between fiction and memoir, creating a layered narrative that moves between social satire, character study, and philosophical reflection.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe story is told in the first person by Ashenden, who serves as both participant and commentator. His voice is urbane, ironic, and reflective-often sympathetic yet detached, characteristic of Maugham's narrative tone.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe structure alternates between two temporal layers: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe present, in which Alroy Kear tries to produce a sanitized biography of Driffield; and\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe past, which Ashenden recalls-his youthful encounters with Ted and Rosie Driffield.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis double time frame allows Maugham to contrast memory and myth, truth and fabrication, and to explore how a writer's life is mythologized after death.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50102304047327,"sku":"9781968194154","price":28.78,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/8lLndxNmvS9781968194154.webp?v=1781079317"},{"product_id":"the-painted-veil-collectors-edition-laminated-hardback-with-jacket-hardcover","title":"The Painted Veil (Collector's Edition) (Laminated Hardback with Jacket) - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e Collector's Edition Laminated Hardback with Jacket \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTrapped in a stifling marriage and craving passion, a reckless young woman makes a fateful mistake-an affair that shatters the fragile balance of her world. When her cold, vengeful husband discovers the betrayal, he issues a chilling ultimatum: accompany him to a cholera-ravaged village in the heart of China or face total ruin. Forced into an alien and perilous landscape, she finds herself grappling with love, loss, and the stark reality of her own emptiness. As the days unfold amid beauty and death, she embarks on an unexpected journey of transformation-one that will challenge everything she thought she knew about herself and the man she once despised.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSet against the backdrop of colonial China, The Painted Veil captures the tensions of East and West, privilege and duty, in a rapidly changing world. Through its gripping tale of betrayal and redemption, the novel explores themes of self-discovery, morality, and the consequences of personal choices. Maugham's nuanced portrayal of a woman's transformation challenges early 20th-century gender expectations, making it a quietly subversive work of its time. Beyond its compelling story, the novel remains a poignant reflection on cultural misunderstanding, imperialism, and the search for meaning in an unforgiving world.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50103140843743,"sku":"9781998736508","price":57.58,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/A1h5DLT8s19781998736508.webp?v=1781090365"}],"url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/collections\/w-somerset-maugham.oembed","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}