The Age of Innocence

The intelligent and charming Newland Archer, a member of one of New York’s most prominent families, is living the life that has always been expected of him. He is engaged to the beautiful and well-connected May Welland and understands the rarefied world of Fifth Avenue society inside out.

However, with the arrival of May’s cousin, the free-spirited and unconventional Countess Ellen Olenska, Newland begins to doubt all that once seemed so natural to him.

Highlights of the Story:

• A masterful dissection of New York high society in the 1870s, the world in which Edith Wharton grew up.
• Critical exploration of social mores and values of the old order.
• A tale of love, duty, and societal expectations, set amidst the elegance of Fifth Avenue society.

The Age of Innocence is an extraordinarily well-observed novel that shines a critical light on the traditions and constraints of a bygone era.