About this title: One of a series of titles first published by Faber between 1930 and 1990, and in a style and format planned with a view to the appearance of the volumes on the bookshelf. This 1989 Booker Prize-winner, a tale of lost causes and lost love, evokes life between the wars in an English country house.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780679731726ISBN:0679731725
Description: Good. Moderate cover wear with scuffing to edges. Slight curve. Age toning. GoodwillnyBooks is committed to providing each customer with the highest standard of customer service. You may return new items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Vintage Books USA
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780679731726ISBN:0679731725
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. trade pb, 13a2, minor shelf/edge wear, Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 256 p. Vintage International (Paperback). Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780679731726ISBN:0679731725
Description: Acceptable. A readable copy. All pages are intact, and the cover is intact (the dust cover may be missing). Pages can include considerable notes-in pen or highlighter-but the notes cannot obscure the text. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780679731726ISBN:0679731725
Description: Good. 24-V Ex-library. Books rated "Good" may have some notes, underlining, or highlighting. These books also may contain the previous owner's name, stamp, sticker, or gift inscription, or may be library discards. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780679731726ISBN:0679731725
Description: Good. 53-Z Books rated "Good" may have some notes, underlining, or highlighting. These books also may contain the previous owner's name, stamp, sticker, or gift inscription, or may be library discards. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
"In the early 1950's, an aging English butler, Stevens, who has served nobility and political figures in Darlington Hall is now trying to serve the new American owner of the house. Stevens takes great pride in his profession, his competence, his loyalty, and, above all, in his dignity. He is puzzled by the American's occasional jesting remarks, and wonders whether he is expected to exchange "witticisms". He tries, he practices, but doesn't hit the mark. He knows he is aging, regrets his slipping abilities, but looks back on his years of service with satisfaction.
The story is told in the first person, and we realize that Stevens is, at times, prideful and narrow-minded. He is a character out of the past, supplied by central casting, nonetheless, a man deserving of our respect and sympathy."
"One would think a novel in the form of a memoir of a British butler might run a bit flat. But with this book I could tell on page one it was going to be good. Not since Old Goriot have I had such an immediate sense for the story. The flow of the book confirmed my serendipitous sign. In this precise British novel by an author with a decidedly un-British name, thirty or forty pages at a time effortlessly pass by. The drama, the introspection, the plot trajectory - all unfold skillfully, and the elegant narration ends on a poignant note.
I never saw the movie. I'm not sure I really need to."
"This is the story of a road trip. Stevens, and aging butler, has been given his employer's car to explore the south of England for several days. He is a rigid man, wedded to the class system, and his place in it as the concientious butler. He tragically misses the fact that the housekeeper loves him, and as the road trip unfolds for him, so,too, do the memories of his life, and the realisation that perhaps, in many things, he has been mistaken. He is idealistic and naive, and at first I thought this was a comedy - the uptight pompous yet touching butler and the spontaneous housekeeper - and it isn't until the final chapters that I realise that I have been reading a profoundly heartbreaking and subtle tragedy of misplaced trust. This character reminds me a little of Data in Startreck, as he resolves to renew his efforts at 'bantering' so that he may pleasantly surprise his employer. Although this is a deeply sad story, the end somehow leaves me with a sense of hope as the lights go on, literally and metaphorically, and he looks to retrieve, with his new insights, the remains of the day and of his life. I loved this book, and thank you Kylie for finding this for me. Nearlly a personal five."
"When I was in college learning about Sartre's existentialism, the example to illustrate the plight of modern man was a waiter. He dresses in uniform and performs his duties for the people he is serving without relating to them in any personal sort of way. He's playing a role, treating himself like an object and not as a human being with independent thoughts and feelings. This book is that example in novelized form, except that the main character is an old-style English butler, not a waiter. And it's one of the most brilliant character studies I have ever read.
The genius of the novel is in the telling, particularly in the uses of understatement and implication. In the very beginning, Stevens (the protagonist) tells us that it's bad form for an English servant to show much of his personal character. Through the rest of the novel, he takes it to an absolutely absurd extreme. Small indications of this are that we are never told Stevens' first name and that he often uses the impersonal "one finds oneself" when most people would just say, "I feel." Bigger revelations of character come through the plot, but this is a spoiler-free review. I'll just say that by the end of the book, when you've really come to like Stevens in spite of all his peculiarities, the author goes "universal" on you. You'll probably see a bit of yourself in Stevens. I certainly did.
If you like an action-packed plot, this is not the book for you. The political backdrop of pre-WW2 gives the book its drama, but there are no great battles, adventures, or narrow escapes. Likewise, the love interest is so understated, I wonder if I would have picked up on it if I hadn't been tipped off in advance. So read this only if you appreciate subtlety. If you do, you're in for something unique. It's no wonder this book has become a 20th century classic."
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