Literary Fiction · MelancholicA wealthy family's decline as its Midwestern town industrializes
The Magnificent Ambersons
The fall of a once-grand family in a fast-growing Midwestern city
The Magnificent Ambersons is set in a largely fictionalized Indianapolis, between the Civil War and the early twentieth century. The Amberson family, once the most prominent in town, sees its status decline as the community industrializes and new money rises. George Amberson Minafer, raised spoiled and oblivious to others, falls in love with Lucy Morgan, unaware of a long history between his mother and Lucy's father.
More about this book
Who
George Amberson Minafer, the spoiled grandson of the family; his mother Isabel; and Lucy Morgan, a sensible young debutante.
World
A largely fictionalized Indianapolis, from the Civil War era to the early twentieth century.
What makes it different
It is the second novel in Tarkington's Growth trilogy and won the 1919 Pulitzer Prize. Orson Welles directed a 1942 film of it, and the studio edited the released version.
Feel
Wistful and social, about pride and change.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Behind the book
Much of the story was inspired by the Woodruff Place neighborhood in Indianapolis.
Source: Wikipedia
Further reading
- The Magnificent AmbersonsWikipedia