I really liked Z for Zelda, I was unimpressed by The Paris Wife, and this book was given to me, so I thought I'd give it a go. I have only read Ethan Frome, and that was a long time ago, so I knew nothing about Edith Wharton going into this book, but I was interested in learning more.
I was sorely disappointed.
For one thing. it takes a real person's history (and someone who wrote quality literature at that) and turns it into a romance/chick-lit kind of book where most of the story is the protagonist mooning over her love interest. This treatment is a disservice to an award-winning author. One could argue that by writing Wharton into a story that attracts an audience who might now read her novels (where they might not before), and while that might be true, I don't think it is sufficient justification for writing a crappy book about a great writer.
Second, I have no idea what was real and what was fiction. There is an author's note at the beginning explaining how she is grateful for access to letters and journals from Anna's estate (the secondary protagonist in the novel). There are frequent insets in the story put in italics to depict the letters/journals characters are writing or reading in the story, but I have no idea if those are actual excerpts from the aforementioned personal papers or if they are simply inspired by the primary source documents. The lack of citations (even dates) makes me suspect they are only inspired by the primary documents and imagined by the author. If my suspicion is false, then the author has done her book and Wharton (and readers!) a disservice by not making the authenticity of the letters apparent. If my suspicion is true, well...see point number one.
Third, because the majority of the book is Wharton mooning over her love interest, the author misses many of the actually interesting parts of Wharton's life. Half way through I checked Wikipedia to get an idea of Wharton's life so I could discern what was truth and what was invented in the book, and I found out that post-Morton, Wharton's life was really interesting and she did some amazing things during and after the War. These amazing things are referenced in the epilogue, but by then the character the author has written has spent so much time mooning and fretting that I find it a stretch to believe that the character Wharton actually did those things. Therefore highlighting my impression that the novel is a romanticized version of Wharton's life and not aligned with her own character. (Again, if my impression is wrong, I lay blame with the author Fields for the injustice done to Wharton.) If the book had stretched over a longer time period and could incorporate those interesting historical activities into the book, it probably would have had more substance and been more interesting.
My fourth criticism is that the characters are all rather flat and boring. Anna, Morton, Teddy, even Edith herself: they fit into boxes imagined by unimaginative high school students.
In summary, this book is a romance that happens to use real-life people and events, lacking in any of the qualities that garnered Wharton's books literary success.
I'll go read her novels instead. ( )

I sometimes find myself enjoying historical fiction based on authors more due to the simple fact that I know so little about their lives. As a former history major and history buff, I have read about numerous historical figures and so, I know at least something about them (usually) before embarking on a historical read about them. However, in the case of most authors of the past, I have not read much about them and so reading a novel about them is like a journey of discovery.

What I liked most about The Age of Desire was the development of the characters. I found myself feeling very sympathetic toward Edith and the situation of her marriage to Teddy. Basically, I felt that she went straight from a loveless childhood (due to her mother) and straight into the same in her marriage. She poured this inner pain into her writing, along with her experiences with the upper crust of society. I know many will feel that I'm wrong in my judgement of Edith due to her actions in the book, but I still feel that Edith was a sympathetic character. In the future, when I read Wharton's novels, I know I will find myself thinking of the Edith in this book.

Anna is a contrast to Edith. Because of their difference in values, Edith's actions disrupts their long friendship. I appreciated Anna's steadfast nature and loyalty to Edith, even if she did disagree with Edith's choices. The men in the book...what can I say. Not very impressive. However, I can't help but think that things could have been far different for Edith and Teddy simply if Edith's mother would have been a kind mother who discussed what it means to be a woman (and married) with Edith and prepared her for what was to come, instead of being cruel and indifferent. Morton? Well, I just won't go there. I knew from the moment he was introduced that he was trouble. Would that we could warn characters to stay away. But then there wouldn't be a story, would there?

I enjoyed this novel and I look forward to reading more from Jennie Fields.

( )

This was quite an interesting book about real-life author Edith Wharton and a fictionalized version of her real-life affaire de coeur with journalist Morton Fullerton. I was even more excited about "The Age of Desire" since I have only recently stumbled upon Mrs. Wharton's own writing and found it a lovely way to spend an afternoon. The book itself is rather fascinating and salacious, full of the thrills and fears of being the one more in love in a relationship. In fact, that seemed quite a theme throughout the book - someone being more in love with someone else and becoming emotionally damaged from the stress.

* I received this book for free from Goodreads First Reads. ( )

Meh. That's the most I can come up with about this book. Simply didn't do it for me. ( )

A bio of a none too like able Edith Wharton. ( )