The Age of Innocence

Wow, that ending.

It was just as frustrating as the world that Newland Archer lives in. His eldest son, Dallas, couldn't have put it any better.

"You never did ask each other anything, did you? And you never told each other anything. You just saw and watched each other, and guessed at what was going on underneath. A deaf-and-dumb asylum, in fact!"

Then, Newland Archer took his cue solely from the fact that the Countess Olenska's manservant kept the balcony awnings and closed the shutters - and left after thirty years of not seeing her. I'm just blown away.

Overall, this was a great book examining the slowly cracking facade of the New York social scene, and the interface between the generation obsessed with Society and the museum-like superficiality that its participants needed to live every aspect of their lives with, and the one that throws these things to the wind. Amazingly and intricately written, it was an engaging read that kept me going page after page, despite a lack of “action” in its traditional sense.