Books like A woman of independent means by Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey


In early 1900s Texas, Bess Steed Garner inherits not only wealth but also the determination to forge her own path. Over the decades from the 1900s through the 1960s, she faces the challenges and joys of love, marriage, and motherhood, all while resisting a society that demands conformity. The novel follows Bess’s steadfast spirit as she turns personal trials into triumphs, illustrating the unique resilience of women navigating social customs of the era.
First publish date: 1978
Genre: General Fiction/General Fiction
Authors: Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey
0.0 (0 community ratings)

A woman of independent means by Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

How are these books recommended?

The books recommended for A woman of independent means by Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey are shaped by reader interaction. Votes on how closely books relate, user ratings, and community comments all help refine these recommendations and highlight books readers genuinely find similar in theme, ideas, and overall reading experience.


Have you read any of these books?
Your votes, ratings, and comments help improve recommendations and make it easier for other readers to discover books they’ll enjoy.

Books similar to A woman of independent means (27 similar books)

Pride and Prejudice by 6487689|Jane Austen book cover

πŸ“˜ Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice is a classic novel by Jane Austen.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.1 (304 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Great Gatsby by 7025876|F. Scott Fitzgerald book cover

πŸ“˜ The Great Gatsby

F.β€―Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece examines the glittering yet hollow glamour of the Roaring Twenties as the enigmatic Jay Gatsby pursues love, wealth, and identity across the social divide.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.0 (164 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Little Women by 6958509|Louisa May Alcott book cover

πŸ“˜ Little Women

The beloved classic of American literature, Little Women, narrates the adventures of four March sisters as they grow up during the Civil War era.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.1 (110 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Summer I Turned Pretty by 4617015|Jenny Han book cover

πŸ“˜ The Summer I Turned Pretty
 by Jenny Han

Twenty‑five year‑old Belly Conklin returns to the family summer home on the coast, where a cancer diagnosis forces her to confront love, loss, and growing up amid the familiar rhythm of beach life.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.4 (96 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Color Purple by 6506633|Alice Walker book cover

πŸ“˜ The Color Purple

Alice Walker's 1982 novel, The Color Purple, won the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award, exploring the lives of black women in the South and their experiences of abuse and struggle for independence.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.2 (81 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Their Eyes Were Watching God by 6594285|Zora Neale Hurston book cover

πŸ“˜ Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston’s Pulitzer‑winning novel follows Janie Crawford’s journey of self‑discovery and empowerment, mapping her search for love, independence, and identity against the backdrop of the African‑American South during the early 20th century.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.1 (38 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
A tree grows in Brooklyn by 8312425|Betty Smith book cover

πŸ“˜ A tree grows in Brooklyn

A heart-wrenching coming-of-age story of poverty and resilience in 1930s Brooklyn.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.3 (24 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The House of Mirth by 6339938|Edith Wharton book cover

πŸ“˜ The House of Mirth

In Edith Wharton’s classic, Lily Bart, a beautiful and intelligent young woman devoted to luxury, struggles to navigate New York’s strict social hierarchy and moral expectations, ultimately confronting the limits of her independence.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.1 (13 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
An Independent Woman by 10079417|Betty Neels book cover

πŸ“˜ An Independent Woman

Julia Gracey, a self‑reliant teacher, faces challenges when Professor Gerard van der Maesβ€”her charismatic colleagueβ€”offers timely solutions that test her independence.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 2.6 (5 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Memoirs of Fanny Hill by 11695904|John Cleland book cover

πŸ“˜ Memoirs of Fanny Hill

Written in debtor's prison in 1784, Memoirs of Fanny Hill is the first modern English erotic novel that follows a young woman forced into prostitution by poverty, who navigates love, betrayal, and personal growth to find her own ending.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 3.2 (4 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Appointment in Samarra by 6676075|John O'Hara book cover

πŸ“˜ Appointment in Samarra

Set in the fictional town of Gibbsville, Pennsylvania,Β Appointment in Samarra follows Julian English as his brief Christmas crisis forces him to confront his excesses, revealing the fragility of the American middle class.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.0 (3 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Forsyte Saga (various novels) by 12058717|John Galsworthy book cover

πŸ“˜ The Forsyte Saga (various novels)

A collection of the Forsyte family novels by John Galsworthy, exploring middle‑class English life, social customs, and family dynamics through the saga of the fictitious Forsyte family.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.0 (1 rating)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
An Independent Woman by 13841248|Claire Harrison book cover

πŸ“˜ An Independent Woman

Her only salvation was the stranger Jo Davidson scoffed at the idea of accepting at face value a stranger's offer of help and company. She was not that naive! But when a mountain storm created plumbing problems in her new tent, she had to turn to someone.... Conrad Wyatt was unlike any man she'd ever met. He was direct and forceful--unafraid to speak his mind or express his desires. Immediately he reduced their conflict to its most basic element: the powerful attraction between them. In the clear light of the Canadian Rockies he challenged Jo's determined independence and exposed her elemental need for love.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 4.0 (1 rating)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Village school by 6948193|Miss Read book cover

πŸ“˜ Village school
 by Miss Read

Village School tells the endearing story of Miss Read and her pupils in the picturesque rural village of Fairacre, where a small school, thatch‑roofed cottages, and a friendly community create a comforting picture of English country life.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 5.0 (1 rating)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
A Lady of Independent Means by 6964600|Sarah Westleigh book cover

πŸ“˜ A Lady of Independent Means

A SIMPLE TRIP TO PARIS Miss Louisa Finsham thought it would be a casual affair--visiting the battlefields of Waterloo with her aunt Amelia. But from the moment their ship set sail, Louisa encountered all sorts of difficulties, including one Lord Hugh Deverill, the most irritating man, who had come to her rescue. But rescue her he did, from her lack of sea legs to a line of suitors waiting to ask for her hand in marriage. Although her wealth attracted all manner of marriage-minded men, Miss Louisa felt that Lord Hugh had other, more tantalizing things on his mind than her money...

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Novel on yellow paper by 10922924|Stevie Smith book cover

πŸ“˜ Novel on yellow paper


β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Town House by 1332716|Norah Lofts book cover

πŸ“˜ The Town House

A sweeping family saga that follows a curse of a Suffolk country house from the late fourteenth century through the twentieth, exploring serfdom, rebellion, and the rise of a dynasty.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Independent Dames by 7698795|Laurie Halse Anderson book cover

πŸ“˜ Independent Dames


β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The red and the green by 3815970|Iris Murdoch book cover

πŸ“˜ The red and the green

Set on Easter Monday 1916 in Dublin, this historical fiction follows a divided family caught in the turmoil of the Irish Easter Rising, where two generations clash over contrasting hopes and loyalties.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Zu mir oder zu dir? Frauengeschichten aus Irland by 6457405|Maeve Binchy book cover

πŸ“˜ Zu mir oder zu dir? Frauengeschichten aus Irland

A collection of brand-new short stories - some hilarious, some heartbreaking - from a wide range of contemporary Irish women writers, including Maeve Binchy and Marian Keyes.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Falconer by 6734390|John Cheever book cover

πŸ“˜ Falconer


β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Leaving Home by 6547305|Anita Brookner book cover

πŸ“˜ Leaving Home

Emma Roberts, a cautious researcher in France, encounters a charming new friend and falls in love with the country.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Earthly Possessions by 7896374|Anne Tyler book cover

πŸ“˜ Earthly Possessions
 by Anne Tyler

A 35‑year‑old mother decides to escape on a holiday, only to be kidnapped by a 20‑year‑old manβ€”henrietta and humor unfold in this 1977 tale of crime and captivity.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Back When We Were Grownups by 7896374|Anne Tyler book cover

πŸ“˜ Back When We Were Grownups
 by Anne Tyler

At 53, a woman in a midlife crisis reflects on her youthful marriage to a widower with three daughters, a large house and a business, exploring identity and self‑actualization.

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Drowning Season by 6855555|Alice Hoffman book cover

πŸ“˜ The Drowning Season


β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
The Joy Luck Club by 162344|Amy Tan book cover

πŸ“˜ The Joy Luck Club
 by Amy Tan


β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by 11789166|Gail Honeyman book cover

πŸ“˜ Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

See https://openlibrary.org/works/OL19781733W/Eleanor_Oliphant_Is_Completely_Fine

β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… 0.0 (0 ratings)
Similar? ✓ Yes 0 ✗ No 0

Have a similar book in mind? Let others know!

Please login to submit books!