Books like A charmed circle by Anna Kavan
A Charmed Circle, an early novel by Anna Kavan, centers on a family trapped in a country house adjacent to a rapidly expanding manufacturing town of the 1920s. The narrative delves into the heavy atmosphere of repression, hostility, and revolt that permeates the house, dominated by a warped father whose influence shapes the lives of his wife, daughters, and son. The young members of the family strive to escape their constraining environment and pursue self‑expression and freedom, yet their efforts ultimately reinforce the confines of their upbringing, leaving them ensnared in a “charmed circle” of limitations. Kavan’s work juxtaposes the English countryside with the rigid urban life of the era, highlighting the tension between domestic stability and societal change.
First publish date: 1929
Genre: General Fiction/General Fiction
Authors: Anna Kavan
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