Washington Square

<p class=ql-align-justify>Set in New York City in the 1840s this celebrated novel tells the story of Catherine Sloper the docile and affectionate daughter of a well-to-do physician who appears destined for a lifetime of spinsterhood with only the companionship of her sardonic father and fatuous aunt.</p><p class=ql-align-justify>When a flurry of attention from an attractive suitor causes the plain and unremarkable Catherine to fall deeply in love the stage is set for a struggle of opposing wills between Catherine and her adored father. Dismayed by his prospective son-in-law's shallowness and lack of prospects and strongly suspecting him of fortune-hunting Dr. Sloper threatens Catherine with disinheritance and forces her into a choice between father and lover.</p><p class=ql-align-justify>As the tale unfolds James explores with acute psychological penetration and masterly storytelling skill the moral consequences of the callous exploitation of trust and the ruthless manipulation of a tender heart. While this memorable story plays itself out in the vanished world of nineteenth-century New York its underlying themes and moral concerns are timeless and universal.</p><p class=ql-align-justify><br></p>