James, Henry

Great American Short Stories (Dover Thrift Editions)

The Portrait of a Lady (Penguin Classics)

When Isabel Archer, a beautiful, spirited American, is brought to Europe by her wealthy Aunt Touchett, it is expected that she will soon marry. But Isabel, resolved to determine her own fate, does not hesitate to turn down two eligible suitors. She then finds herself irresistibly drawn to Gilbert Osmond, who, beneath his veneer of charm and cultivation, is cruelty itself. A story of intense poignancy, Isabel's tale of love and betrayal still resonates with modern audiences.

The Turn of the Screw, Second Edition (Norton Critical Editions)

The story starts conventionally enough with friends sharing ghost stories 'round the fire on Christmas Eve. One of the guests tells about a governess at a country house plagued by supernatural visitors. But in the hands of Henry James, the master of nuance, this little tale of terror is an exquisite gem of sexual and psychological ambiguity. Only the young governess can see the ghosts; only she suspects that the previous governess and her lover are controlling the two orphaned children (a girl and a boy) for some evil purpose. The household staff don't know what she's talking about, the children are evasive when questioned, and the master of the house (the children's uncle) is absent. Why does the young girl claim not to see a perfectly visible woman standing on the far side of the lake? Are the children being deceptive, or is the governess being paranoid? By leaving the questions unanswered, The Turn of Screw generates spine-tingling anxiety in its mesmerized readers.

The Turn of the Screw remains one of Henry James's most remarkable narratives, one whose popularity when it was published is matched by its power to stir readers today. It is one of James's most teachable texts, an indispensable reference point for such critical concerns as point of view and unreliable narration. As such, it is an invaluable introduction to the intricacies of James's style and technique in the novels of the "major phase." This revised Norton Critical Edition of The Turn of the Screw is again based on the authoritative New York Edition text, with history and notes. "Contexts" includes twenty-six selections from James's letters, notebooks, and other writings centering on "my little book," the ghost story, and the supernatural. Four Charles Demuth paintings, inspired by James's text, are included. Since The Turn of the Screw has been a focal text in recent theoretical considerations of James and of the narrative generally, "Criticism" has been thoroughly updated to include seventeen new assessments, along with twelve earlier seminal essays. A Chronology and Selected Bibliography are also included.

About the Series: Each Norton Critical Edition includes an authoritative text, contextual and source materials, and a wide range of interpretations-from contemporary perspectives to the most current critical theory-as well as a bibliography and, in most cases, a chronology of the author's life and work.

Henry James' short novels provide an overview of his entire career and serve as an excellent introduction to his singular art and imagination.

The Turn of the Screw - Literary Touchstone Classic

This Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Classic includes a glossary and reader's notes to help the modern reader more fully appreciate the rich complexity of James' language, images, and symbols. Before there was Alfred Hitchcock, there was Henry James, and before Psycho, there was The Turn of the Screw. Why is the young governess the only one who can see the ghosts? Are her young charges haunted or evil? Or is the governess herself mad? The book that claims to start out as a Christmas Eve ghost story quickly becomes a tale of psychological horror as the governess struggles-and ultimately fails-to protect the children from the "corruption" that only she can conceive of...but cannot name. Richly wrought in Late-Victorian prose, Henry James' most famous novel is both hauntingly beautiful and a shocking glimpse into the ultimate source of evil...the human mind.

The Turn of the Screw and The Aspern Papers (Penguin Classics)

In these two chilling stories, Henry James shows himself to be a master of haunting atmosphere and unbearable tension. The Turn of the Screw tells of a young governess sent to a country home to take charge of two orphans, Miles and Flora. Unsettled by a sense of intense evil within the house, she soon becomes obsessed with the belief that malevolent forces are stalking the children in her care. Obsession of a more worldly variety lies at the heart of The Aspern Papers, the tale of a literary historian determined to get his hands on some letters written by a great poet-and prepared to use trickery and deception to achieve his aims.

Daisy Miller

"Daisy Miller" is Henry James's classic story of a young American woman who while traveling in Europe is courted by Frederick Winterbourne. Originally published in The Cornhill Magazine in 1878, "Daisy Miller" is a novel that plays upon the contrast between American and European society that is common to James's work. The title character's youthful innocence is sharply contrasted with the sophistication of European society in this fatefully tragic tale.

The Turn of the Screw and Other Short Fiction (Bantam Classics)

To read a story by Henry James is to enter a  world--a rich, perfectly crafted domain of vivid  language and splendid, complex characters. Devious  children, sparring lovers, capricious American girls,  obtuse bachelors, sibylline spinsters and charming  Europeans populate these five fascinating  Nouvelles --works which represent the  author in both his early and late phases. From the  apparitions of evil that haunt the governess in  The Turn Of The Screw to the  startling self-scrutiny of an egotistical man in  The Beast In The Jungle, the mysterious  tumings of human behavior are skillfully and  coolly observed--proving Henry James to be a master of  psychological insight as well as one of the finest  stylists of modern English literature.

Daisy Miller (Penguin Classics)

Washington Square (Signet Classics)

With a new afterword by Michael Cunningham

What Catherine Sloper lacks in brains and beauty, she makes up for by being "very good." The handsome Morris Townsend would do anything to win her hand-even if it means pretending that he loves the homely ingénue, and cares nothing for her opulent wealth.

Inspired by a story Henry James heard at a dinner party, Washington Square tells how the rakish but idle Morris Townsend tries to win the heart of heiress Catherine Sloper against the objections of her father. Precise and understated, the book endures as a matchless social study of New York in the mid-nineteenth century.

The Portrait of A Lady (Signet Classics)

Spirited, beautiful young American Isabel Archer journeys to Europe to, in modern terms, "find herself." But what she finds there may prove to be her undoing, especially when an infinitely sophisticated lady plots against her.