W Somerset Maugham Books

I am a big fan of Sumerset Maugham. The problem with this particular book (and it does not happen in any other I have read/bought) is that it is full of typos!

There are repeated phrases; using form instead of from; too instead of to.. etc. The amount of errors is unprecedented and I wonder is this some sort of "off brand" reprint??

I would suggest looking for a different maker for these stories. It must be out there.

It's great news that they'll soon be issuing a new edition of this collection. The stories are timeless and beautifully rendered. Maugham explores everything from the evils of colonialism to the rigid social expectations of turn of the century Chicago aristocrats -- and in each case he transports us to the South Pacific. He's one of the great practitioners of the short story and this collection provides us with a concise glimpse at his handiwork.

Somerset Maugham was a veteran of British intelligence during World War I, an experience that was to influence his views of the world in subsequent years as well as his writing. The Trembling of a Leaf is a compilation of six short stories and two sketches by Maugham, including his famous story "Rain," an ironic look at the dark consequences and of being too fixated on the object of your affections, -- which is perhaps better known by its film and theater adaptation as "Sadie Thompson." Romance, the cruel forces of reality, and a keen attention to the unforeseen color this classic anthology showcasing Somerset Maugham's literary genius.

This book consists of 8 short stories, many of them playing in the South Sea Islands. After reading this book you will want to go there and enjoy the beauty of life. Beautifully written, a pure pleasure to read!

This is one of Maugham's best novels. It really reads like one of his short stories which has been very extended and expanded. Highly recommended.

Although this book was met with less than glowing reviews and is little known today, it probably best exemplifies the expresson, "That (It) was right out of Somerset Maugham." It has all the trappings that we think of when we think of Maugham. If there is a "Greeneland" (Graham Greene) then this novel is most assuredly, Maughamland. It takes place in the East Indies and has the string of colorful characters, an Opiem taking Doctor, A broken down sea captain and a women who finds herself liberated by the death of a man she is attached to. Probably Maugham's fifth most important novel, it is rather like taking many of his short story themes and elongating them into one novel. The lead character, Dr. Sanders finally resigns himself to a lazy mans view of Buddhist Non-atachment and it becomes a theme Maugham would explore more deeply in the "Razor's Edge." Like most of Maugham it is a alot of fun to read. Even, or maybe especially, today.

Maugham writes about a British doctor who lives in the South Pacific. At the outset of this book, Dr. Saunders must travel to China to help out a wealthy man. Once there, he completes his task and must wait for a boat to take him back to his home. During the waiting process, he runs into a pair of traders, who offer to take him back part of the way. The traders, Captain Nichols, and his associate Fred Blake, are two very interesting characters who aren't what they seem to be. During their travels, Dr. Saunders learns more about the pair. Nichols is a scoundrel and has problems holding a job. Fred Blake, a young and handsome man, hides his past, but the reader is given clues that he had to flee from Sydney to avoid the authorities(which is later revealed). During a storm, the trio befriend fellow British people on a beautiful island. They learn some of the history and are introduced to Louise; a beautiful girl who is smitten by Blake. They have a one night fling, which causes the story's tension to begin -- Blake is haunted by his past and Louise's fiancée (who she loves, but not with her heart) commits suicide over the incident. Dr. Saunders is a spectator for the most part in this story. His life's philosophy is take what one can from life and learn to deal with it. He watches the various characters interact -- and Maugham does a great job with the characters. The writing is almost like Hemingway and the reader is drawn into the feeling of the South Pacific. The book is fairly deep -- with hints of Buddhism / Hinduism, karma, and detachment. The book was very slow to start (took about half way before any plot developed) but the writing hooked me and the ending was a gold mine.

When he first meets Charles Strickland, a London stockbroker, the young narrator of this novel thinks of him as "good, honest, dull, and plain." When Strickland suddenly abandons his wife and children and takes off for Paris, however, the narrator decides he is a cad. Though he has had no training, Strickland has decided to become an artist, a drive so strong that he is willing to sacrifice everything toward that end. Anti-social, and feeling no obligation to observe even the smallest social decencies, Strickland becomes increasingly boorish as he practices his art. Eventually, he makes his way to Tahiti, where he "marries," moves to a remote cottage, and spends the rest of his life devoted to his painting.

Basing the novel loosely on the life of Paul Gauguin, Maugham creates an involving and often exciting story. His narrator is a writer who feels impelled, after Strickland's death and posthumous success, to set down his memories of his early interactions with Strickland in London and Paris. Because the narrator never saw Strickland after he left Paris, he depends on his meetings with a ship captain and a woman in Papeete for information about Strickland after Strickland's arrival in Tahiti. The ship captain is described as a story-teller who may be spinning tall tales, a constant reminder to the reader that this is fiction, and not a biography of Gauguin.

By depicting Strickland as a "dull, plain" man suddenly gripped by an obsession so overwhelming that nothing else matters to him, Maugham involves the reader in his actions, which even the narrator claims not to understand. The least convincing aspect of Strickland's characterization is the narrator's observation that Strickland is completely indifferent to his wife of seventeen years and his children. No confrontation between Strickland and his wife appears, and one wonders if perhaps Maugham found himself unable to depict such an abandonment realistically. The story moves quickly, however, and whatever is sacrificed in the characterization is more than recouped in the plot and its development.

Straightforward in its story line, the novel is romantic in its depiction of the artist in the grip of an obsession, his subsequent abandonment of civilization and return to nature, his suffering of a long and terminal illness (during which he paints his masterpiece), and the fate of this creation. Good, old-fashioned story-telling at its best, this uncomplicated story, written in 1919, still has broad appeal. Mary Whipple

The work of British author Somerset Maugham (1874-1965), this is a supremely interesting book which explores the intricacies of the human mind through the story of man's sudden and improbable obsession with art. Based on the life of post-impressionist painter Paul Gauguin and set in locations as diverse as seedier sections of Paris and the tropical splendor of Tahiti, it deals with the inexplicable urge which seemingly at random strikes some of us and leads them to leave everything and everyone they know in order to dedicate their lives to a purpose, be it religion, the love of another, art or infinite other things, which those around them little understand and often disdain. Maugham's masterfully crafted prose is an added treat. This is a must-read which will spiritually enrich anyone who peruses it.

Painting, even if it uses codes, is the art of showing, whereas the writer, limited to words, can only proceed by allusion, by tickling images from the minds of his public. This was the challenge in Maugham's novel-length portrait of the cursed painter, loosely based on Gauguin's life. The result is a powerful and haunting depiction, as directly powerful as any painting.

The story follows the downward spiral of Charles Strickland from the moment he decides to leave his stockbroking job and conventional English family, or rather his upward spiral, towards artistic zenith. The victims fall one after the other around him as he sacrifices everything to painting, not just wealth and security, but all regard for fellow humans and decency physical and moral. Yet this is no stereotype of the crazed genius. Strickland is coldly conscious of his choices, pragmatic in his idolatry, clear-eyed in his determination on a ride to hell; this is what makes The Moon and Sixpence so convincing and so creepily fascinating.

Maugham avoids delving into the unknowable reasons for his protagonist's change of life. Neither does he waste time in ponderous commentary on painting or the nature of genius. At the same time, the narrator's tale, with its inevitable hearsay and conjecture, contrasts the ambiguity of storytelling with the absolutes of pictorial art. But this is essentially a white-knuckle ride from London to Paris, on to the dodgier suburbs of Marseille, and destruction in the Tahitian jungle. Almost as obsessive as Strickland's own passion.

The book revisits a theme that Maugham took up several
times - that of an artist completely devoted to his art.
Interestingly, there is no attempt to look for the causes
of the destructive behavior of the main character, or even
to pass judgment on it. Strickland's life and actions
are examined, sometimes in great detail. However, after the author's
initial disapprobation, he comes to some sort of acceptance of
Strickland strange way of life.

W. Somerset Maugham is best when he writes about
relationships. While this book seems a bit forced at times,
Maugham had such a unique view of the topic that always makes
his writing interesting.

Maugham has put in a lot of effort in an attempt to delve into the mind of an artist, tortured by his artistic impuses, impervious to the ordinary needs of normal people and to the moral codes that are made to secure and safeguard the needs.

But his choice of an english stockbroker to represent the very gaelic gauguin is flawed. Perhaps I was prejudiced, but an englishman in colonial times, in my mind was strictly bound to ideas of fair play and social morals. He's not, unlike his french counterpart able to disregard, convention and give in to powerful artistic impulses.

The depiction of the burst of creativity, in tahiti, the tropicalness, the simplicity of natives, who lead their lives governed by instinct rather than complex social norms wasn't powerful or impressive, not in the same was that irving stone impressed with his depiction van gogh's achivements in arles.

Nice book, though it wanders away the last 40 pages. Not at the level of the brilliant "Of Human Bondage."

This is very far from Maugham's best (to me, his short stories and novellas). The character, Strickland, genius painter perhaps based on Gauguin, is just not believable. Real great artists (such as Gauguin) may be odd in their personal lives, but they do spend time with other artists, they do discuss art; they don't seem to be the ignorant brutes this fellow is. The book feeds off a popular idea of the artist as outsider, and certainly there have been many who were. Yet even Van Gogh, exemplary nutter genius, talked to other painters, including Gauguin. Strickland's art comes out of a personal vacuum, which seems unrealistic.

So unlikely is the main character that before the book ended I lost interest and stopped reading. For a better book by Maugham on the unexpected personal life of great artists, read Cakes and Ale instead.

I love this series, and this title is a lot of fun, not least because of Ramses. I recommend the whole series to anyone who likes lighthearted mysteries, even though the later ones, set in and around WWI, are darker in tone.

But my question remains... why are they reprinting this in hardback? Are they planning to do that with the whole series? I understand that Peters has finished with the series, so I guess the publishers are trying to get as much out of the books as they can, by reissuing. I wish, though, that Peters would see her way clear to maybe just one more original title, maybe another one filling in gaps, like she did with Guardian of the Horizon. Anything but this....

But it is still a great series and I recommend it to everyone!

My book came in a excellent condition and faster than I expected. I was very pleased with my service.

this is a re-release of a book that I purchased years ago - I was gullible enough to believe that Amazon would tell me that this was a previously released novel - not so ! I am disappointed in Amaazon - my memory is not good enough to remind me that I bought this book years ago! a good read - but not a good re-read !

Oops! I ordered this book months ago, thinking that it would be a new release, and I was quite looking forward to more Amelia Peabody. When it arrived, I can't tell you how disappointed I was that it was a very early Amelia- which I not only had already read, but I already owned a copy of. I was just going to "suck it up", assuming that I was the only one who hadn't read the description closely enough, but I see that I have company. You'd better believe that I'll read more closely in the future- and hope that others will too.

I noticed that almost everyone who bought this book after its September 4, 2007 HARDCOVER release date found that this was a re-release of a 1985 book. I love Elizabeth Peters books (by whatever pen name she uses) and thought that AHA! It's A NEW RELEASE! I didn't even scroll down the screen for more information because it appeared to be a NEW Elizabeth Peters book. Unfortunately, if you're like me, by the time you read this review it will be too late. The header line for books should indicate when books are re-releases. I hope that Amazon will take note.

Otherwise, I would give this book the five stars it would have received twenty years ago.

In addition to this, I've also read Of Human Bondage and The Razor's Edge. This is the least of the three, but still enjoyable. Not as controversial as one might be lead to believe, though I suspect it raised a few brows in its time. Maugham seemed to be big on having women as whores for central characters. Not all the women characters, but there seems like there is always one. This doesn't always mean they are bad people, just real real loose! This title isn't necessarily only for completists. If you are new to him, check out Of Human Bondage. It's his best that I've come across so far.

In the late 1920's, an aged literary lion, a venerated late Victorian novelist, Edward Driffield, has died and his widow thinks his life should be written down. She appeals to a younger novelist, Alroy Kear, who had attached himself to their society. In turn, he appeals to a friend who he knows must have known the legend earlier in life. The friend he turns to is the first-person narrator of CAKES AND ALE, Ashenden, also a novelist, who gradually reveals to the reader the truth of the deceased's early life. How much he will reveal to the other characters is another thing, and even if he did, the controlling widow, the man's second and much younger wife, would most likely excise what does not fit the public image she had worked hard to preserve. When it comes to pinning down a protagonist, however, the novel turns on the character of Rosie, Driffield's long-gone first wife.

Several things are going on in CAKES AND ALE. One is the real history of Edward Driffield (whose stature and career bear something of a resemblance to Thomas Hardy, who died in 1928), and the narrator's own interlinked coming of age. Then there is the narrator's scathing look at literary society and the machinations by which critical success and public favor are won. He drops a lot of industry insider jokes, and several actual personages are discussed, but he also returns to the eternal writers' theme of who among them will be read past their deaths. Lastly, the sharp contrast between Victorian life and 20th century existence emerges as a dramatic theme; there is the sense that those with one foot in each culture will never be able to fully absorb the rapid change in mores and fashions. The only figure who floats across the divide is the person who from the outset bucked convention of any kind, Rosie.

Maugham infuses the narrative with a sharp wit and good conversation. It is very shrewd and justifiably cynical about human ambitions and weaknesses. The dramatic story unfolds slowly but with tensions and secrets that keep going until the very end. This remains very satisfying reading 75 years after publication.

The reason that I read this book was because I fell in love with W. Somerset Maugham's writing style when I read 'Of Human Bondage'. Unfortunately, I was greatly disappointed to go from 'Of Human Bondage', which is now my favourite book, to 'Cakes & Ale'. From the very beginning I confess that I had difficulty with the storyline. I found myself constantly wondering what the setting was of a scene. I found the character of Roy rather distracting and dull. Despite the fact that the story would not exist if not for his character, I felt that he was of no importance.

The only time that I actually felt myself get interested in the story was when Edward and Rosie Driffield came onto the pages. I enjoyed their characters and the way that they interacted with Ashenden. From the very beginning I liked both of their characters, especially Rosie for her personality.

Although this book was beautiful and so well written I found myself staring down at the pages in awe at times, I did not enjoy it as much as 'Of Human Bondage' and 'The Razor's Edge', which I read directly after 'Cakes & Ale'. I would have to say the only good things about this novel were Edward and Rosie's characters and the last few pages. The one thing that truly turned me against liking this book was the ending. To me it seemed rather abrupt and not at all fitting of the story. It left me cold as the majority of the story did. I was unable to connect with the characters very well, which is something that bothers me to no end. I like to get involved in the book I am reading, feel what the characters are feeling, but there was so little of that here that by the time I finished this book I was admittedly a bit disgusted that I had wasted my time by reading it.

This is the first book I have read in a LONG time. If you are like me your practical experience with fiction evolved formulated novels (Brown, Clancy, and Ect). Don't get pissy if you like them, I like them well enough but all the books follow the same format. It's like reading the same story, over and over. This book held my attention and I finished it in like 8 hrs, my personal record. The characters develop fast enough and the plot is deeper than you average rock'm sock'm fiction of current. Maugham has an interesting way of giving a person incites in to what makes a person tick. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys the human condition in all its idocencrisy.

In the development from squalling tyke to full-fledged adulthood, human beings tend to gather around them items of media that reflect back upon them their personal conception of the world, in all its myriad forms: music that invigorates the higher spheres, movies that confirm our own view of existence, and authors that speak directly to us, that seem able to give tangible expression to our individual perceptions. For me, reading Somerset Maugham is like diving into the ambivalent soup of my own viewpoint. With his dry wit, penetrating digressions and general psychological understanding of the foibles and frequent inconsistencies of human behavior, Somerset ~feels~ like a fellow brother-in-arms, a voice in the ether, a soulmate artist intoning over the distance of seven decades. It's like reading my own thoughts. Thus have I systematically perused the man's greater works, including his two masterpieces *Of Human Bondage* and *The Razor's Edge*, and returned again and again to the little jewels that fashion the glittering arraignment of his literary crown, being the short stories that are the condensed summation of Somerset's genius perception. Not that the man would agree with that last statement: Somerset considered himself the top of 2nd tier authors, far from `genius' status; and was condemned by critics for his popularity and lack of the experimental drive. Given that he did not delve into the symbolic/semantic abysses of his contemporaries Faulkner and Joyce, Somerset's oeuvre and reputation has remained 2nd tier for the Ivory Tower set, with his focus on `real world' examination paling before the tongue-twisting allegory-riffing of the literary elite. But I'd rather browse the *Collected Short Stories* for the nth time than be rebuffed by *Finnigan's Wake*, the resultant insights of those short stories revealing more in their brevity than anything I could possibly assimilate in the syntax swamp of the Dubliner.

Despite his so-called 2nd tier status, Somerset has survived the literary axe of indifference, gaining stature as the years march on and his works are continually reexamined; and it is curious to read, near the beginning of this novel, the author's alias Ashenden argue with a potboiler-scribe named Roy Kear about posterity - specifically which of their colleagues will endure their current era. Roy Kear claims that that the principle subject of their discussion, a one Edward Driffield, so-called "last of the Victorians", has put a permanent stamp upon the literary zeitgeist. Ashenden/Somerset refutes this with this simple opinion that he finds Driffield's works "rather boring." And later, around the halfway mark of *Cakes and Ales*, Somerset slips from the narrative into a long digression about posterity itself, concluding with the basic idea: "Longevity = Posterity." Driffield, loosely based on Thomas Hardy, wrote so many novels, and lived to such an advanced age, that he outlasted all his competitors and was eventually hailed as a "living genius" by a society desperate for continual applications to the Canon, especially those survivors who could be re-discovered and subsequently championed. If Somerset's theory is correct, then even Stephen King will be considered an essential stone in the Zeitgeist (... "NEVER! NEVER!" I can hear the Bloomites and literati shout, even now) with his accurate reflection of 20th century atmosphere - real-time horrors metaphorically transfigured into cheesy monsters - and, more importantly, by his vast, prolific staying power. Time will tell.

*Cakes and Ale* is a minor work of Somerset's oeuvre, but not insignificant: the author himself stated it to be his favorite work, and I must admit that, like the short fiction, this slender volume contains the essence of Somerset's talent and technique, a condensed viewpoint much easier and overall enjoyable than the emotional torment *Of Human Bondage.* The book concerns itself with the legacy of Edward Driffield, post-mortem; Roy Kears has been hired to write a glowing tribute/biography of the famous author, and he enlists Somerset, who knew the deceased long before his literary fame, to help with research. *Cakes and Ale* is thus a near-sequel to *Of Human Bondage*, as Somerset reflects on his boyhood days - the terrible conformity and isolationism of English villages; his eventual escape therein - a flight aided in part by Driffield and the central pivot of the man's career, his first wife Rosie. Rosie, free-thinking, vivacious and serially unfaithful, inspires Driffield's finest novels and serves as his golden-haired muse. Roy Kears and Driffield's second wife view Rosie as the stain upon the authorial page, the impediment which kept the author from his deserved glory: she is to be reduced as much as possible from the biography. Somerset thinks otherwise, although he is remarkably prejudiced, given his relationship with her; but with the concluding passages of *Cakes and Ale* he gives concrete evidence as to the importance of this wanton Muse, without which Driffield might never have attained his peak prowess.

(A side note: Rosie's character reminds me of Ida, from Graham Greene's *Brighton Rock*, and both can be viewed as an English author's artistic attempt to exorcise the puritan viewpoint of the day about "loose women" in general. "Rosie was made to love," Somerset gushes, biased by circumstance but psychologically keen nonetheless).

*Cakes and Ale*: A minor but extremely enjoyable text from one of the greatest observers/authors of the early 20th century. Highly Recommended.

I know a lot of people who liked this book and think Somerset Maugham is a great writer and who am I to judge, but I found reading some of the sentences awful. As another reviewer commented on the "economy of language", I felt words were deliberately dropped to get the shortest sentence possible and then some sentences were 5th grade level: "Mary drove through the silent streets of Florence, along the road by which she had come, then up the hill..." (big yawn)Lastly, it seemed to me as you were reading, the subject matter just simply changed in the next sentence. Perhaps this is how they wrote back then, in the late 1930's. I have read Maugham's "Of Human Bondage" and thought it quite good.

I was also disappointed with the description of Florence. Maugham gives you a tiny flavor and description of this beautiful Italian city. This is my own flaw and assumptions. I bought the book because it took place in Florence and at a villa. So I readily admit, I had some preconceived ideas that didn't pan out. I think only fair I explain as one reads my personal review here.

I wouldn't call it `another beautiful work of art'. A good story of a crime committed and perpetrator(s) gets away with it. I would call it a suspense novel. It is indeed a quick read. The story itself is good in the fact you have "some" wrestling with a moral dilemma issues, and personally, I do not think Maugham's character, Mary, did much wrestling. Mostly, we see her struggling with her guilt, and rightly so, though it seems quickly disposed of. There was no crime to begin with, only embarrassment. How many of us would act the way Mary did? I dare say not many. And who could live with the guilt of what you did? I think most people of good character, which Mary is reported to be, would be haunted by this desperate act, and therefore it wouldn't get as far as Mary allowed it. Despite other reviewers, this is not a romance. Mary does indeed do a kindness and could be considered a romantic gesture - but it ends abruptly and the moral dilemma begins. There are some very good lines in the book that are clever and thoughtful. It is a book worth reading. It is just not my kind of story.

There is a certain sense of accomplishment when you read a book in one sitting. It is an achievement that can make you view a work more fondly than it deserves.

I spent a pleasant hour and a bit with this short novel and it was good fun but, despite the
one-sitting euphoria, I cannot pretend it was anything more than a slight diversion. Effectively an extended short story this is fairly disposable and won't be troubling my 'ones to keep' bookshelves.

This is the story of a young widow and three men, a respectable older gentlement who wants to marry her, a poor violin playing refugee, and a sexy rogue with a bad reputation. A brief affair and a death reveal the complexities of these four people. This is a beautifully crafted story.

There is no writer who captures the haugtiness of Edwardian upper class culture better than Maugham and in many of his writings dramatic tension derives from cultural and class contrasts between upper class English expatriots and the local people that they become involved with.
Here the protaganist is a young unmarried and very attractive woman staying in Florence at a friends Villa who draws attention from all of the men she encounters. One of the encounters results in a tragedy and the event and it's aftermath drives the story to it's quick conclusion.
Maugham writes dialogue that is quick, witty and obviously adaptable to the stage or screen since he was primarily known as a playwrite as well as a novelist.This short work is no exception.
The action proceeds quickly and this makes Up At The Villa a short but very satisfying book to read.

As short as Of Human Bondage is long and as prosaic as The Razor's Edge is profound, Up at the Villa fails to inspire the way these aforementioned works of genius or other such timeless tomes as Cakes and Ale or Moon and Sixpence.

This book, however, was not all bad. It was eminently enjoyable and, as all of Maugham's efforts, was a pleasure to read. Maugham's gift with the English language is unsurpassed and vastly underrated. Unfortunately, Up at the Villa just didn't have enough Maugham. Not enough characterization or plot or theme development as I would have liked and have grown accustomed to with the genius of Maugham. I have yet to see the movie with Kristin Scott Thomas and Sean Penn, although I'm sure I will in due time. Overall, if you thoroughly enjoy Maugham as I do, check it out at the library.

"That's what life's for - to take risks."
- Rowley to Mary

I read this novel years ago and had almost forgotten about it. I had certainly forgotten how vivid and distinct the characters are. Maugham is one of my favorite writers; as one of his short story characters said, I have a weakness for a story with a beginning, a middle and an end. This story has all three and a very satifying end at that.

Middle-aged woman, a star of the London theatre, beautiful, fulfilled. But she thinks that something is missing in her life and falls in love with a very young guy, who is mesmerized by her fame. Later the young lover meets a girl of his age and falls in love with her, leaving behind his older lover. The story is as old as this world. What makes it so different from other million love stories? THe talant of it's writer and the truly wonderful finale. Maugham was able to turn the whole thing upside down. And it's not one of those sticky-sweet novels, this one has a strong character, which makes it truly interesting to read.

A photo from the set of Being Julia, the forthcoming film version with Annette Bening, led me to this book. Julia Lambert alleviates even the most claustrophobic subway ride with delicious English wit and melliflous sentences. You'll want to read some of the best lines out loud.

This is a novel so relentlessly slight that one proceeds through it with the constant expectation that the *actual* novel might at any moment begin. The whole thing (some 300 pages in my edition) reads like a set-up for something substantial, a story in which the characters here engaged- an actress named Julia; her actor-manager husband Michael; their accountant Tom; their son Roger; and a small cast of lesser (and entirely one-dimensional) figures, down to and including a caricature Cockney maid- have something of import or significance to do, say to one another, or perhaps think. The closest we get, alas, is a brief period of introspection on Julia's part, prompted by an out-of-left-field observation from son Roger, in which she considers that it is possible that her life does not merely center around her acting, but has in fact itself *become* acting. And there we are.

If there were any particular consequences to or results from the heroine's several romantic intrigues (which substitute for a plot); if there were more about acting as such, or about the theater world of London between the wars; if the dialogue were wittily engaging, or if the narration were somehow less pedestrian (one's finger never once itches for the highlighter)--if any of this were the case, one could see why "Theatre" deserved a place, if perhaps a marginal one, in Maugham's much-praised oeuvre. But they aren't, so the question hangs fire: if that sizable body of work (including 20 novels) inspires blurbs like the one on the back of my Russian-reprint (with typos aplenty) edition-"Maugham's keen and observant eye, subtle irony and brilliant style made his books extremely popular all over the world."-how did "Theatre" find its way into the mix? Cheez Whiz, talk about irony! It's hard to imagine a better summary-- keen observations, subtlety, irony and brilliance-of the elements *missing* from "Theatre."

Granted, there are some diverting moments here and there, and just enough competent storytelling to keep the reader from tossing "Theatre" aside after a hundred pages. But at its best the novel still leaves one suspecting, as developments so adamantly refuse to take place and significance successfully escapes at every turn, that one has somehow picked up an Agatha Christie novel which never gets to the murder.

Put otherwise, there is probably a good short story in here dying to get out. And that, in effect, may already have happened-only the short story has emerged as a screenplay. A movie based on "Theatre", called "Being Julia" and starring Annette Benning, is apparently scheduled for release in 2004. While I'm not racing to reserve tickets for opening night, I can see how Hollywood might feel that a nicely filmable star vehicle/character study might come out of this novel- and indeed, might have a much better chance for success in its genre than the original did on the printed page.

"Theater" is my favorite W. Somerset Maugham's book. I have read it many times and remember it very vividly.

"Theater" is the story of Julia Lambert, the best and deservingly famous stage actress in England. On stage she is a true master of her craft, she is great in playing every possible human feeling and emotion. Off stage, however, she is not very happy with her handsome but not too bright husband; she does not have close relationship with her teenager son. At first, amused and touched by the adoration of a young fan, she eventually falls madly in love and lives through the real feelings and emotions that she was so great in playing on stage. How she deals with love, jealousy, anger, loneliness, aging - that's what "Theater" is about. She was able to take her revenge and punish her unfaithful lover, not only as a woman but what is more important, as an artist, and that was absolutely brilliant. Masterfully told story with delightful main character - talented, witty, charming, and very clever, "Theater" is an enjoyable, insightful, and honest portrait of a woman and an artist.

4.5/5

Charley Mason is off to spend his Christmas week in Paris and the young respectable middle-class life he knows is suddenly thrown into sharp relief as he comes into contact with a world-weary russian prostitute who's life story becomes the real center of this novel.
Lydia works in a brothel and when Charlie's ascetic living friend Simon takes him there to show him a good time, Charlie befriends her instead and is drawn temporarily into her world.
Maugham draws on his intimate knowledge of both cultures to draw vivid characters and in describing varied settings from the Louvre to the backstreet cafes and brothels of pre-war Paris. The tale related to Charlie by his new acquaintance is the heart of the story and quite a story it turns out to be.
I recently read that this was not considered by Maugham to be one of his better novels but it is still highly entertaining, enlightening and a fine read.

"Christmas Holiday" takes place in a period of interlude between the two world wars in England and France when the worst in world affairs was not over but yet to come. For Charley Mason, the young Englishman the gift of 5 days in Paris his parents have given him turns out to be less the anticipated celebration and more of an unsettling interlude in his own life. It develops for him into a revelatory journey that blemishes his happy heart and privileged home life. He reunites in Paris with a troubled boyhood friend Simon now a news reporter who he hasn't seen for two years. Charley is bewildered and tries to gain perspective on Simon's seeming metamorphosis into a self-confessed misanthropist and insensitive manipulator. It is Simon who lays out all the sores of humanity for Charley's tender sensibilities to collide with. At the Sérail, a cabaret where bare breasted dancing girls glitter in harem pants and turbans and can be taken upstairs for a price, Simon pairs Charley with "Princess Olga" the working name of an enigmatic Russian girl named Lydia. Charley is ensnared by Lydia's anguished life story, her orphaned state, her poverty and unreasonable devotion to a convict husband whose imprisonment and guilt she feels she must share through her own continued suffering. For a brief time the reality of Charley 's respectable, comfortable and secure existence becomes entwined with those whom fate has not so similarly blessed. His"Holiday" changes him forever.

Here again Maugham's gift for telling a story is evident. He uses words with a facility that brings a narrative to life in a way that engages the imagination and enables the reader to vividly picture the characters and events. A recommended read.

I've read most of Somerset Maugham's major novels, and many of his short stories. He is one of my favorite English authors, mostly because of the skill with which he so easily marries place, time, and scenery into the drama at hand. The motivations and actions of his characters are generally believable and in tune with their characterization. Christmas Holiday is no exception, although in my book it's far behind his three best novels, "Of Human Bondage", "The Razor's Edge", and "The Moon and Sixpence". I like the story, but after two readings continue to find it less memorable than the novels just mentioned, or many of his South Pacific short stories.

Charley Mason, a middle class college student from England is given a holiday in Paris by his Babbit-esque father during Christmas-time. He gladly accepts, and there, looks up his philosophically engrossed friend, Simon. Simon has been living a spartan lifestyle, filling his head with fascist political idealogy. No matter how friendly Charley tries to be, Simon pushes him away in a misguided attempt to make himself "hard" and impervious. The interactions between Simon and Charley remind me of those between Anthony Beavis, Helen Amberley, and Mark Staithes in Aldous Huxley's, "Eyeless in Gaza". Both novels, which were written in the late 1930's, portray the tense build-up to WWII, and the brewing hostility of zealous fascists. Maugham certainly came across people seduced by fascist ideaology at this time, and Simon is the fictional incarnation of these uncompromising dogmatists.

The bulk of the story evolves around Charley's lengthy discussions with a young Russian prostitute named Lydia, introduced to him by Simon. Lydia is really the main focus of the novel, and it's her wild, and dramatic life-story which captivates and eventually opens Charley's naive and sleepy eyes to the complexities of the world, and especially women. Instead of using her for pleasure, as Simon had intended, Charley be-friends her (in accord with his gentlemanly nature) and spends his vacation time getting to know her. The best parts about the novel to me are Maugham's descriptions of the Parisian background. Unlike Huxley, Maugham has a play-write's acute sensibility to atmosphere, and is very comfortable describing and utilizing scenery: Charley's comfortable English home, Simon's spartan studio, Charley's pleasant hotel room, the streets of Montparnasse, the smoky cafes, bars, and restaurants, the Louvre, St. Eustache, French Guyanna, etc. are all vividly drawn. Each significant conversation between the characters takes place in a location which enhances and compliments the larger story. At the Louvre when Lydia shows Charley her favorite painting, a simple picture of bread and wine by Chardin, and tells him what it means to her, Charley, who had been reminiscing and searching for all the "significant" paintings his art-snob mother had so eloquently spoken to him of, is visably affected.

The contrast between Charley and all that he represents, with Lydia and her tragic world, is the heart of the novel. The main drawbacks to me are Robert Berger's (Lydia's imprisoned husband)overly-consuming story, and the seemingly sleight handling of Charley throughout. The Robert Berger mystery is interesting in itself, but sometimes didn't jibe well with the "Charley Mason explores and comes of age in Paris" storyline. And Maugham sometimes seems ambiguous about likable characters like Charley (or, Larry in "The Razor's Edge"). I think this reflects Maugham's increasing bitterness in old age, ala Lord Henry Wotton ("Dorian Gray"). As always with Maugham, there has to be drama, and I think Maugham's self-described status as "the best of the second-raters" is never more apropos than in Christmas Holiday.

Although this may not be the masterpiece of 20th literature, I have to admit that it was a very absorbing read. As we follow Charly, the well-bred perfect English gentlemen, through his week long vacation in Paris, we become ensnared in the life story of the prostitute he befriends and her web of friends and acquaintances. The story itself is interesting in its own right, but what really makes the narrative flow is how Maugham lets us peer into the psyches of various characters, all from different social strata. My personal favorite was Berger, Lydia's husband who despite his rogue behavior was one of the more memorable (and even likable) characters. Simon, Charly's friend was drawn perhaps a bit too extremely, but Maugham does use that to some effect. In any case, a fun read and a good story.

Maughm has the unusual talent of baring truths about human nature in a most simplified fashion. His insights into the complexities of human relationships reveal his incredible talent with words. Maughm has been my absolute favorite writer for years...His unpretentious writing style reveals intelligence in the most positive way, extending out to anyone who loves to hear a wonderful story.
"Christmas Holiday" begins and ends in one exhilirating whirlwind, without ever a moment of slight boredom. Maughm writes with a fluidity that cannot be matched by any other writer. He is simply the best at his art - storytelling.

I picked up this volume of stories because I'd heard that W Somerset Maugham was the true master of the short story form. I've read a lot of contemporary writers so I wanted to compare. I learned a lot from these stories.

The first thing I learned was subtlety. These stories weren't filled with action sequences or grand plots, but instead they were filled with intent and slow moving determination. He lets the story unfold in the actions of his characters and reveals their mind through words, action and narrative. At first I have to admit that I thought these stories boring and without purpose but then I reread the first stories and realized that every word had purpose and that purpose was the action - the beautiful subtle flowing action of the stories told so well that they seemed effortless and haunting at the same time. Then I was not bored.

The second thing I learned was theme. I don't know if Maugham consciously wrote to a theme or whether it developed organically, but however he did it the theme permeated each story with symbolism in elegance. There was this one story about an island's regent and his assistant. They didn't get along and eventually that tension built into ill intent, but the scenes were decorated with contrasting imagery - chaos interrupting serenity, just like the main characters. It works so well to put the reader in the mood for what's to come. It's kind of magical when you realize that it's working and it's intentional, manipulative even.

The third thing I learned is that a story doesn't have to change the world or reveal great secrets, but that changing a single person in one significant way is enough. It's enough and sometimes more than just enough for a story - sometimes it's perfect.

- CV Rick, May 2008

I recently learned about the author W. Somerset Maugham while reading a review of another book on Amazon.com. I enjoy reading short stories. One of my favorite short story writers is Guy de Maupassant. While reading the forward in this book the author writes about his writing style and how Guy de Maupasssant influenced his style of writing. I looked forward to reading the stories even more after reading the forward.

I told my Dad (aged 77) I was reading the book, and he wondered if I read the story Rain. He had enjoyed reading the story very much when he was younger. At that point I had not read the story Rain. After reading the story I could see why it was popular several decades ago, since it probably shocked many people. I found the story Rain and other stories by the author very predictable and dated in the year 2007.

I notice that in many of the stories W. S Maugham writes about prostitutes and other topics that would not be allowed in a high school setting. I believe that is why many people have not heard of the author. The most famous short stories in the book are Rain and the Fall of Edward Barnard, which you must read. Many of the stories written by the author have become movies such as Rain. Recently a movie came out titled The Painted Veil based on a novel by the author. I am presently reading it and hope I enjoy it.

If you like Somerset Maughm stories, this book is perfect. It is a nice
assortment of his well-known and lesser known stories. You can pick it
up and read it at any time. A very satisfying book.

This physically lovely volume, beautifully bound (it even has a red ribbon bookmark), is a great start for anyone interested in the short fiction of Maugham. These days Maugham is rather underrated, which is all the more unfortunate because his short works, unlike many of his novels, are more consistently well-crafted and engaging. This collection is first rate, although some of Maugham's best stories (e.g. "The Facts of Life" and "Lord Montdrago") are curiously absent (as they are from many incomplete collections). If you're looking for the complete short stories, obviously this isn't the volume for you, but if you want a large compilation of most of this writer's work, this is an excellent start.

A well chosen collection of 31 of Maugham's short stories. With over 800 pages, that works out to just short of 30 pages per story. This means that there is ample time for character development and not just brief telling of an interesting incident.

Maugham is a master of developing characters and the stereotypes that he designs are the standard for several genres. Many of the stories concern the South Seas and the differences between the whites and the natives. This collection also has many of his Asian stories about white colonists and their foibles. The last few stories are based on Maugham's spy experiences. (Maugham was a British Spy for years - one of his missions was to prevent the fall of Russia to the Communists)

Most of these stories are full of black humor. And Maugham is one of the world's great curmudgeons. The interplay between men and women is another favorite topic and Maugham's lack of Romanticism is obvious. He is almost (but not quite) misogynistic. "When a man marries, his wife sooner or later estranges him from his old friends." "With two lovers there is always one who loves and one who lets himself be loved." (These are two representative quotes from the book.)

And just a short comment on this edition. It is hardback, with a sewn-in page marker and inexpensive for this quality of book. In general I enjoy the Everyman editions and prices.

All in all excellent, humorous, biting and entertaining.