Manhattan Monologues

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He is our sublime master of manners, our "most astute observer of moral paradox among the affluent" (Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.), and "one of the essential American writers" (Kirkus). Now, in his fifty-seventh book, Louis Auchincloss delivers a brilliant collection of ten new, previously unpublished, stories; once again, he unfailingly "voices truths with elegant precision" (Publishers Weekly).MANHATTAN MONOLOGUES charts a colorful New York century through a series of personal accounts from the rarefied circle that fills Auchincloss's best short fiction. Here are characters who confidently finesse their way through society's uppermost tiers and yet are just as easily undone by the smallest upset in a day. Like all of Auchincloss's richest creations, they bump up against their consciences, with often surprising results. What, for instance, is a woman to do when she must choose between true love and high society when making a marriage? How can a man stay true to himself, his family, and his country when it goes to war? How can a determined marriage broker salvage matters when the young man she has so painstakingly steered toward a love match becomes charmed by another woman?These tales, and many more, fashion a glamorous, yet all too human, societal portrait -- from the aristocratic loyalties of the early twentieth century to the complicated twists of modern-day mergers and acquisitions. MANHATTAN MONOLOGUES is Louis Auchincloss at his most clever, his most discerning, his best.From Publishers WeeklyAuchincloss mines familiar ground-life in New York's financial and cultural top drawer during the 20th century and its accompanying upheavals-in his 57th book, a collection of 10 previously unpublished stories. Nearly every character is the scion of some great banking family or a partner in one of Manhattan's prestigious law firms, and an air of entitlement weighs heavily on each story, though this is balanced with equal parts humor and pathos. The protagonists' world of elite boarding schools and exclusive clubs is redolent of a not-so-distant past of privilege, but the characters remain endearingly human in their foibles and follies. In "Harry's Brother," awkward Charles Pierce Jr. spends his entire life in the shadow of his roguish, popular younger sibling; a woman's efforts to find a suitable bride for her charming but indolent son backfire in "The Marriage Broker." A longing for romantic love shapes much of the book, as in "The Heiress," the reminiscence of a spirited woman drawn to a suitor "different and more interesting" than the "great man of the future" her father demanded that she marry. By setting these stories against the backdrop of a century, the author traces the evolution of Gotham's upper classes, suggesting continuity even as traditional wealth slowly gives way to the twin specters of globalization and new money. Auchincloss favors stylized writing, shot through with dense, sinewy passages, and even when the dialogue leans in the direction of the archaic, he makes it seem effortless and true. Once again, he lives up to his reputation as one of our great men of letters.Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library JournalThe president of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a renowned and prolific writer, Auchincloss (The Rector of Justin) here offers his 57th book. This collection of previously unpublished short stories is all about the high society denizens of New York City during the 1900s. The trials and tribulations of the very rich in their city, country, business, and prep school settings are carefully crafted to show that human interactions and the problems they cause repeat themselves through time and across all social classes. The loveless marriage, the child who does not measure up to parental expectations, the attempts to manipulate the lives of others, and the confrontation of life's hard realities are all examined. The resolution of the difficulties described are largely dependent on the vagaries of human nature and not on the size of the bank account. Auchincloss is urbane, humorous, and somewhat ironic in his storytelling, making this collection a treat to read. - Joanna M. Burkhardt, Univ. of Rhode Island Coll. of Continuing Education Lib., Providence Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.