About this title: Originally published in 1928, Radclyffe Hall's The Well of Loneliness is the timeless story of a lesbian couple's struggle to be accepted by "polite" society. Shockingly candid for its time, this novel was the very first to condemn homophobic society for its unfair treatment of gays and lesbians.
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Description: Good. 1990-Paperback----Used-Good-Hall Street Books proudly ships from Brooklyn, NY. All orders are processed and shipped within 24 hours, M-F. 100% money back No-Worry guarantee with expedited delivery and delivery confirmation available. read more
Description: Very Good. Great condition for a used book! Minimal wear. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Edition: First Thus
Binding: Vintage Paperback
Publisher: Perma Books, Garden City, New York
Date Published: 1951
Description: Good. Good Vintage Paperback; 476 pp., first Perma Books (# 112), reprint of the controversial 1928 novel; short commentary by Havelock Ellis. All pages present, some corner & edgewear, creasing, head/tail of spine repaired with archival tape. read more
Edition: Later Printing
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Anchor Books, New York, New York, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780385416092ISBN:0385416091
Description: Very Good. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. A very good paperback copy, lightly used. The spine is solid and square and free of reading creases. The cover shows only mild wear. The text is clean and unmarked. ---------------------------------Origina published in 1928. An openly lesbian novel about a woman named Stephen Gordon and her lover Mary, and the scandal their relationship caused. The novel caused a scandal too and, after an obsenity trial was banned in England. 437 pages. read more
Edition: Fifth Printing
Binding: Trade Paperback
Publisher: Anchor Books, New York, New York, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780385416092ISBN:0385416091
Description: Very Good. 5" x 8" 437 Pages. Ex-libris on inside of front cover. Tight straight book with just hint of age-tanning at page borders. Original copyright 1928. First Anchor Books Edition was November 1990. A timeless story of a lesbian couple's struggle to be accepted by polite society. When an unconventional woman named Stephen Gordon falls in love with an ingenue named Mary, their love affair gives Stephen her first tast of happiness. However, the pleasure the lovers find in each other is ... read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: New York, New York, U.S.A. : Anchor Books, 1990
ISBN-13:9780385416092ISBN:0385416091
Description: Near fine condition softcover. Some edgewear. "Originally published in 1928, Radcylffe Hall's 'The Well of Loneliness' is the timeless story of a lesbian couple's struggle to be accepted by 'polite' society. 'The Well of Loneliness' is the thinly disguised story of Radcylffe Hall's own life. Shockingly candid for its time, this novel was the very first to condemn homophobic society for its unfair treatment of gays and lesbians. Banned outright in 1928, its publication marked an act of great ... read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Anchor Books
Date Published: 1990
ISBN-13:9780385416092ISBN:0385416091
Description: Very Good Plus. Size: 8vo-7¾"-9¾"; Later printing of the first edition. Tight, clean copy of the pb. VG+++. "A 1920s Classic of Lesbian Fiction" read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Covici, Friede, New York
Date Published: 1930
ISBN-13:9780385416092ISBN:0385416091
Description: Good. No DJ. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. Cloth, 506 pp.; 25 cm. First published, 1928. Binding slightly shaken. Moderate shelfwear to boards, with rubbing & wear to caps, tips. Tanned spine. Short tear in top margin of the "Publisher's Note. " Expected browning. The classic lesbian novel. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Blue Ribbon Books
Date Published: 1928-01-01
Description: Good. Blue Ribbon Books [Published date: 1928]. Hard cover, 506 pp. Reprint. Good / NO dust jacket. Blue cloth covered boards with blind stamped signature on front and gold lettering on spine. Light rubbing and bumping along edges with a bit of fraying to the corner tips. Light overall rubbing. Binding tight. End-papers brown with age, but otherwise clean and unmarked. NOT Ex-library. NO remainder marks. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Anchor Books
Date Published: 1990-10-01
ISBN-13:9780385416092ISBN:0385416091
Description: NEW. Softcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9780385416092. read more
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Edition: 1st Edition
Binding: HARDCOVER
Publisher: Covici Friede Pub, NY
Date Published: 1929
Description: VERY GOOD Condition. 6x10"oversized Tan Clothbound 237-506pg FADED SPINE has silver titles & 2 stars at head of spine. Front cover has Tan cloth edges & Blue cloth covered boards with silve Gilt top Edge on this SINGLE VOLUME of Special Edition, printed to commemorate victory of publishising freedom in courts. ep also states "Volume Two" Chapter 3. read more
"it should be MANDATORY that everyone reads this book. everyone. there isn't anything too astounding about her writing style, and nothing too "deep" about it either. anyone could pick up this book and see clearly everything she's very clearly alluding to, so there isn't much mystery, but instead, a whole lot of straightforward honesty about an aspect of the world most overlook without even realizing.
what broke back mountain failed miserably in doing, ratcliffe did with ease. this isn't some kinky, soft core porn, fantasy, lesbian sex thriller. it isn't a sob story about rights denied gays either.
it's just the tragic story of someone who is. but her state of being, by no fault or choice of her own, disallows her from the honor given to even the most degenerate people of society.
it's just her story-- without bias, without the evil conspiracy of the "homosexual agenda", without hope of guilting the readers into self loathing, or repentance of unfair treatment to diverse populations-- it just is.
i wish my mom could/would read this book. not that she is like the extreme mother in this book- just because it would be a way for her to see aspects of my heart that she would never be able to imagine a way to understand otherwise."
"I love reading books that have at some point been a source of controversy, the books that have been banned and censored, questioned and attacked. The Well of Loneliness is one of those books, and by looking at the cover of the edition I read there's a clue right there as to the reasoning for the controversy: "A 1920s Classic of Lesbian Fiction".
Steven Gordon is a wealthy English woman who is clearly not like other women, even from a young age. Her father had hoped for a boy and pinned those hopes on her name, Steven, while her mother was horrified and disgusted by Steven's less-than-feminine behavior in her early years. It's a long story, starting with Steven's youngest days and her earliest infatuation with someone of the same gender, and follows her into her late adolescence as she discovers just what exactly does make her different from other women. It is this self-discovery and outward behavior to fulfill this epiphany that causes strife between her and her mother. Eventually she leaves home and has a series of affairs with other women, each relationship different, each relationship special to Steven in some way.
What makes this story important is not just because it's a positive portrayal of women in love with one another, but because of the time in which it was written. Published in 1928 it is one of the earliest books of lesbianism, preceding and paving the way for Virginia Woolf and others. This is not a cautionary tale - it is not a story meant to deter women from having relations with other women. Instead it embraces it as in it's an autobiographical story based on Hall's own experiences. She brought her experiences into a public light; despite it's publication falling at the end of the Jazz Age which is popularly considered to be a time of failing moral and social systems, to read about lesbians at the time was still shocking. Would Woolf have written Orlando had Hall not written The Well of Loneliness? It's hard to say, but it's almost guaranteed that Woolf would have had a harder time getting Orlando published if Hall hadn't paved the literary (and feminist) way."
"The Well of Loneliness was first published in 1928, and because it was the first book of its kind to deal with the subject of same-sex relationships, Radclyffe Hall had to invent a new type of narrative.
I found this book full of insight into human motivations and how easily people's actions can be misunderstood. Radclyffe Hall was very perceptive.
It was a very sad story and showed what life was like for those who had to hide who they were and who they loved, and how they suffered because of it.
The atmosphere was built up slowly but steadily. Nobility of mind and spirit (as personified by the heroine, Stephen Gordon), suffering, religion, persecution, sacrifice and love.
There were many interesting devices used, but the one that struck me most was that some scenes featured no change. One in particular left me feeling empty, uneasy and restless - which fitted in perfectly with what the scene had been about.
I don't know much about Radclyffe Hall and perhaps it's better that way, because I was able to read and evaluate (and enjoy) the book for its own merits."
By Kristina,
Reading, Hampshire, The United Kingdom
"I enjoyed this book though I found the style of writing unusual. It wasn't quite a stream of consciousness novel but it seemed to be written from the perspective of "the voice in your head"
The ending was an unexpected twist but a fascinating story. I have learnt much about the 1920s and the beginnings of the emancipation of women in Europe."
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