The History of Tom Jones: and The Female Husband (Vintage Classics) - Softcover

Fielding, Henry

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0099511924 ISBN 13: 9780099511922

Publisher: Vintage Classics, 2007

Synopsis

Despite being abandoned by his parents, Tom Jones grows into a gallant and irresistible young man. Most of his time is spent romping through the English countryside, getting himself into all kinds of trouble with his good nature and unquenchable eye for women. After being betrayed by jealous relatives, Tom is exiled from home and must undergo a variety of trials in his quest to be reunited with his one true love and to redeem himself in the eyes of society. Filled with mischief and adventure, this bildungsroman is one of the most clever and witty novels ever written. Also included is The Female Husband, the previously unavailable sensationalist pamphlet about a legal case involving a transvestite.

About this title

Product Description:

Tom Jones, born a foundling, grown into a gallant and irresistible hero, romps through the English countryside getting himself into all kinds of trouble through his good nature and eye for the ladies. Betrayed by jealous relatives, Tom is exiled from home and must undergo a variety of trials and adventures in his quest to be reunited with his one true love and redeem himself in the eyes of society.

Review:

"The plotting is complex, astonishing and perfect. It brims with good nature and generosity of spirit...it's full of jokes, suspense, cliffhangers, narrative reversals and pathos'" (Jonathan Coe Time Out)

"I think the Oedipus Tyrannus, The Alchemist, and Tom Jones, the three most perfect plots ever planned. And how charming, how wholesome, Fielding always is! To take him up after Richardson, is like emerging from a sick room heated by stoves, into an open lawn, on a breezy day in May" (Samuel Taylor Coleridge)

"An exquisite picture of human manners" (Edward Gibbon, author of The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire)

"I am shocked to hear you quote from so vicious a book. I am sorry to hear you have read it: a confession which no modest lady should ever make" (Samuel Johnson talking about Tom Jones)

About this edition

• Publisher: Vintage Classics
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0099511924
• ISBN 13: 9780099511922
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 912