{"product_id":"the-american-henry-james-9781500101039","title":"The American","description":"Originally published as a series in \u003ci\u003eThe Atlantic Monthly, \u003c\/i\u003e this classic novel comes from the pen of Henry James, certainly one of the greatest Anglo-American writers of the late nineteenth century. It tells the sometimes comedic, sometimes dark story of a wealthy American, Christopher Newman, on his first extended tour of Europe. Newman meets, falls in love with, and courts a woman from a Parisian aristocratic family. Although in desperate financial straits, they strenuously resist his attempts to woo their daughter because of his perceived low social status. In his struggle with the snobbish aristocrats, Newman discovers a guilty secret in their past, and is faced with his own moral dilemma: Should he reveal their secret, bring about their downfall, and succeed in winning his bride?James addressed a number of real societal issues in this novel. These include the clash between the youthful wealth and lack of class consciousness of the New World, versus the class-stratified moribund Old World, and the struggle within a person's moral compass which juxtaposes the \"right\" thing versus personal gain. The book was originally conceived as a reply to Alexandre Dumas, fils', play \u003ci\u003eL'Étrangère, \u003c\/i\u003e in which Americans were presented as loud-mouthed and classless. In \u003ci\u003eThe American, \u003c\/i\u003e James showed that Americans were just as much at home in the Old World as in the New, and interwove a storyline which made it the first truly successful international novel. Its all-embracing appeal and timeless themes have ensured its popularity to the present day.Cover Illustration: \u003ci\u003eYoung Man at His Window, \u003c\/i\u003e Gustave Caillebotte, 1875.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Henry James\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1500101036\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781500101039\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Createspace Independent Publishing Platform\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/05\/2014\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 340\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.00lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.71d","brand":"Henry James","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48439479009535,"sku":"9781500101039","price":16.2,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_7aa7a8c1-6cdb-44af-ad14-c4bc64b981d4.jpg?v=1777177874","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-american-henry-james-9781500101039","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}