Summer by Edith Wharton – The Classic Art Collection

This is the complete and unabridged text of the beautiful coming of age story, Summer.

Cover art: Young Beauty with a Basket of Roses by Frederico Andreotti, painted in 1900.

For an illustrated edition of this book, click here.

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Charity Royall is pining for change when a charming young architect from the city, Lucius Harney, walks into the derelict library she tends. He immediately captures her heart. Like the lush, summery Berkshires landscape surrounding them, Charity’s romance with Lucius is idyllic. But harsh realities soon set in – from the material deprivation of her impoverished hometown to her mysterious origins on “the Mountain,” Charity is met with obstacle after obstacle. 

Known as Edith Wharton’s personal favorite and most sensational novel, Summer (1917) is a compelling and provocative coming of age story that remains profoundly relevant to our time. To sum it up, Summer is a tour de force – the embodiment of light, ever threatened by impending darkness.