Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair
A Novel without a Hero
A satire of 19th-century British society.
Book Excerpt
a corresponding sneer--the hour for parting came; and the grief of that moment was considerably lessened by the admirable discourse which Miss Pinkerton addressed to her pupil. Not that the parting speech caused Amelia to philosophise, or that it armed her in any way with a calmness, the result of argument; but it was intolerably dull, pompous, and tedious; and having the fear of her schoolmistress greatly before her eyes, Miss Sedley did not venture, in her presence, to give way to any ebullitions of private grief. A seed-cake and a bottle of wine were produced in the drawing-room, as on the solemn occasions of the visits of parents, and these refreshments being partaken of, Miss Sedley was at liberty to depart.
"You'll go in and say good-by to Miss Pinkerton, Becky!" said Miss Jemima to a young lady of whom nobody took any notice, and who was coming downstairs with her own bandbox.
"I suppose I must," said Miss Sharp calmly, and much to the wonder of Miss Jemima; and the latter having knocked
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Readers reviews
4.3
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I haven't yet finished it but so far it is wonderful! Extremely well-written satire. I think it's going to be one of my all-time favorite books.
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I found this satire with so much tragedy it wasn't funny. It shows a lot of hypocrisy in their society and it also reflects ours in some ways.
11/12/2010
Vanity Fair was my introduction to Thackeray, and once I had settled down and snuggled in the sumptuousness of his prose, and became habituated to the cadence and lilt of his language, it was a thoroughly enjoyable voyage through the society and mores of early 19th centuary British society. An excellent read!
02/22/2010