Regarded by many as Henry James's finest work and a lucid tragedy exploring the distance
between money and happiness The Portrait of a Lady contains an introduction by Philip Horne in
Penguin Classics. When Isabel Archer a beautiful spirited American is brought to Europe by
her wealthy aunt Touchett it is expected that she will soon marry. But Isabel resolved to
enjoy the freedom that her fortune has opened up and to determine her own fate does not
hesitate to turn down two eligible suitors. Then she finds herself irresistibly drawn to
Gilbert Osmond. Charming and cultivated Osmond sees Isabel as a rich prize waiting to be
taken. Beneath his veneer of civilized behaviour Isabel discovers cruelty and a stifling
darkness. In this portrait of a 'young woman affronting her destiny' Henry James created one
of his most magnificent heroines and a story of intense poignancy. This edition of The
Portrait of a Lady based on the earliest published copy of the novel is the version read
first and loved by most readers in James's lifetime. It also contains a chronology further
reading notes and an introduction by Philip Horne. Henry James (1843-1916) son of a prominent
theologian and brother to the philosopher William James was one of the most celebrated
novelists of the fin-de-siècle . In addition to many short stories plays books of criticism
biography and autobiography and much travel writing he wrote some twenty novels. His novella
Daisy Miller (1878) established him as a literary figure on both sides of the Atlantic and his
other novels in Penguin Classics include Washington Square (1880) The Portrait of a Lady
(1881) The Awkward Age (1899) The Wings of the Dove (1902) The Ambassadors (1903) and The
Golden Bowl (1904). If you enjoyed The Portrait of a Lady you might like Edith Wharton's The
Age of Innocence also available in Penguin Classics. 'Matchless a grave description of one
of life's great traumas the passage from innocence to experience' Anita Brookner
