Dusty Answer

By Rosamond Lehmann

Book Overview

Rosamond Lehmann's "Dusty Answer" is a classic example of the bildungsroman, exploring the journey of self-discovery and identity formation. Falling squarely into the categories of literary fiction and coming-of-age stories, the novel intricately portrays the experiences of women navigating a world of change and societal expectations. This meticulously prepared edition offers readers a timeless exploration of youth, womanhood, and the search for meaning. Lehmann's work resonates deeply with its sensitive portrayal of personal growth and the complexities of human relationships. Dive into a story of enduring appeal, where the protagonist's quest for self-understanding mirrors the universal desire to define oneself. A powerful and insightful exploration of identity, "Dusty Answer" remains a relevant and thought-provoking read for anyone interested in the classic themes of the bildungsroman.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

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• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1023530716
• ISBN13: 9781023530712
• Release Date: March 2025
• Publisher: Anson Street Press
• Length: 284 Pages
• Weight: 0.88 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

intense and impassioned

_Dusty Answer_ was Lehmann's first novel, published in 1927 when she was just 26. Sales were slow and not much critical notice was taken of the book until Alfred Noyes gave it a glowing review in the Sunday Times, making _Dusty Answer_ a bestseller almost overnight. Its heroine, Judith Earle, is an intelligent, earnest girl who becomes entangled in the lives of five cousins who have occasionally visited at the house next door to Judith's; Judith played with them as a child, and years later, comes to know them again as she enters adulthood. When they reenter her life, she falls desperately in love with one of them. It often lacks narrative drive (especially in the rather uncertain, diffuse ending), but its intense, often idyllic, and impassioned style is compelling, a foretaste of things to come.

Very well written

This is the kind of book that you can re-read. (I have several times.) It's really very sad that it and so many of Rosamond Lehmann's other books are out of print. The plot is about a young English girl who falls in love with the family next door...over several years, as she grows up, goes to Cambridge, goes out into the world she keeps meeting various members and has relationships with them. If you like English writers like Elizabeth Taylor or Mary Webb as well as "women's fiction" I would highly recommend not only this book but Lehmann's others, especially "Invitation to the Waltz" and "The Weather in the Streets."