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After our meeting this month, the members of my book club agreed: we had one of our best discussions in a long time, if not in our 12-year history. The book that elicited such an enthusiastic response? The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton's breakout 1905 novel about a well-to-do young woman who, after losing both of her parents and the family fortune, finds herself dependent on the benevolence of rich friends to remain in high society.

The richness of the story and the varied issues it touches on made great discussion points --- the mindset of the main character, Lily, her motivations, and whether she was self-destructive or naive. Opinions varied about whether or not the story was slow at times, who liked Lily, and who was less sympathetic to her situation. Worthy of discussion alone is the poignant --- and ambiguous --- ending, which The New York Times reported on last November. A letter written by Wharton was recently found in which she sheds light on Lily's actions.

Another topic we touched on was the role of women in Old New York society and Lily's apparent reluctance to wed during a time when women were raised, as she says, "to be ornamental" and making an advantageous marriage was the highest aim. Interestingly, one of the most provocative questions raised was one that can't really be answered. What would the astute and intelligent Lily have been able to accomplish if she were living today? And what would she think of the freedoms that women have?

This is one of the reasons I enjoy reading classics --- not only to visit a bygone era like Wharton's Old New York, a world she knew well and describes in vivid detail, but for how these stories can put the present in perspective. This month, in addition to The House of Mirth, I read on my own Wharton's lesser-known novel, The Glimpses of the Moon. Written 17 years after The House of Mirth and a bestseller when it was first published, it unfolds the romantic misadventures of a young couple with no money, but the right social connections. It's much lighter in tone than its predecessor but does share some similarities, notably a main character reliant on the hospitality of well-to-do acquaintances.

For groups who want to take on two classics, The House of Mirth and The Glimpses of the Moon will make a perfect pairing --- and could result in a conversation twice as compelling.

--- Shannon McKenna Schmidt

Click here for a discussion guide to The House of Mirth.

Preserving Wharton' Legacy: The Lenox, Massachusetts, estate where Edith Wharton wrote The House of Mirth and other works, which is featured in the forthcoming literary travel book, Novel Destinations (coming in May 2008) is in danger of closing. A fundraising campaign has been launched, and $3 million needs to be raised before March 24, 2008. Pledges can be made at http://www.edithwharton.org/, and they won't be called in unless the monetary goal is reached.