Of Human Bondage [Paperback]

Hungary. Országgy?lés. Képvisel?ház. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1865

The International Collectors Library are reprint editions of classic fiction and non-fiction bound in faux leather with 24K gold stamping replicating historic binding designs.

Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: University of Michigan Library; Book Club Edition edition (January 1, 1865)
• Language: Hungarian
• ISBN-10: 1125236213
• ISBN-13: 978-1125236215
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,210,317 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Proves To Anyone Who Might Ever Doubt It What A Powerful Medium The Novel Can Be, December 10, 2007

By 

Notnadia (Currently upstairs.) - See all my reviews

Of Human Bondage truly is the greatest English-language novel of the first decade of the twentieth-century. In its depth, psycho-emotional sensitivity, its continent-ranging scope, and above all in the young Somerset Maugham's understanding of the human species, Of Human Bondage is one of the best novels penned in any language, in any era. I rank this story and the method with which its author tells it among the giants of the art form and on a par with War and Peace, Les Misérables, Gone With The Wind, and The Great Gatsby. It has lost absolutely nothing to age or time and stands as touching now as it no doubt did a hundred years ago or will a hundred years hence. (Check back with me in 2107 and I'll confirm that.) Personally I admit I was shocked and humbled by the breadth of Maugham's talent. For its size Of Human Bondage never once grew boring or slow and was the utmost pleasure to read. The only regrettable thing about this novel was that it eventually did have to come to an end, as we are proverbially reminded that all good things do. A lover of literature should read this book in his or her lifetime. It's that profoundly remarkable.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a classic for a reason, May 17, 2008

By 

Scott George (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

The thing I found amazing about this novel was the emotional openness for the time it was written. It is no secret now (nor was it a secret when it was written) that this novel is autobiographical. Maugham writes vividly about the torture he faced as a child and young man, but what is more extraordinary is his recognition of his own contribution to his pain. Rare now, but rarer then.

Highly recommended!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "There's always one who loves and one who lets himself be loved.", January 15, 2009

By 

EL - See all my reviews

From the opening paragraph foreshadowing Philip's early painful separation from his mother, I knew this book would have my full attention the whole way through (I read the 1936 two-volume hardcover edition).

A master storyteller, Maugham clearly drew extensively from his own life to tell Philip Carey's coming of age story.

As a boy, Philip is an orphaned loner who manages to turn his highly self-magnified deformity into a secret weapon to develop a strong sense of self-reliance and stubbornness. This independent streak in part is responsible for his schizophrenic career path changes and his inability to commit to relationships. (We find ourselves half cheering for Philip and half frustrated with him!)

Translated as tenacity, however, this stubbornness is also the reason why he is capable of demonstrating such empathy for those who cross his path in life. Whether it be among his colleagues, friends or lovers, to some of whom he becomes inextricably bound, Philip develops almost saint-like qualities: "A gentleman, in every sense of the word." Maugham, however, does not allow us to think too much of Philip, who remains as human as can be -- even displaying a nasty and selfish side as he learns of the ill health of his stodgy, cold uncle who brought him up. (I often found myself thinking Philip might be considered a modern day codependent.)

Philip's bondage seems to manifest itself in his inability to escape his tendency to get caught up time and again in situations in which he plays the servant -- whether it be becoming ensnared in loveless, one-sided romantic relationships, or assuming the role of caregiver to those around him. At times Philip's life seems dreadful and loveless, so it is a relief when in time he befriends the Athelnys, a cheerful family who "adopt" him and eventually change his fate.

This is a poignant, lively, at times witty read, filled with deliciously introspective moments and pithy aphorisms. The plot changes are interesting; however, they are at times too predictable. The final few chapters, in particular, seem to roll head-long into a perfectly predictable conclusion. This is otherwise a perfectly great novel with a remarkably contemporary feel to it. A philosophical journey into the self.