Christmas Holiday (Paperback)

by W. Somerset Maugham (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
Delany isn't the only author Vintage is keeping afloat. Published in 1939, 1937, and 1940, respectively, these novels follow Maugham's popular theme whereby people whose seemingly steady lives become completely and utterly altered. Note also that Up at the Villa was made into a feature film in 2000, which may draw additional readers. Maugham is always a quick and pleasant read.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"The sheer unmatched skill with which Mr. Maugham [tells] his tale[s] would fill any novelist with envy." --Chicago Tribune

"Brilliant." --The New York Times

"It is very difficult for a writer of my generation, if he is honest, to pretend indifference to the work of Somerset Maugham...He was always so entirely there." --Gore Vidal -- Review

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Vintage (December 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375724613
• ISBN-13: 978-0375724619
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #429,701 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well told, believable novel, January 2, 2002

By	David Mills (Ottawa, Canada) - See all my reviews

This may not be Maugham's greatest work, but it is effective and well told. Charley, a young, benevolent, middle-class Englishman goes on holiday to Paris at Christmas-time. There, with a sardonic childhood friend, he undergoes a rite of passage common to youths of earlier eras: a visit to a brothel, here an expensive one (the Sèrail) where he meets Lydia, a Russian prostitute who works there ostensibly to help her convict husband, but, she confesses to him, where she is actually expiating the sin of murder committed by her husband through selling her body to despised and despising men. She has had a difficult life: impoverished childhood, early marriage to a charming youth who hides his criminal activities from her until committing a murder for which he is sentenced to Cayenne. Lydia, aware of his malevolent side, nonetheless has always loved and always will love this man and here Maugham convincingly portrays the irrationality, pain, and depth of love. After spending several days dining, dancing, visiting the Louvre, sharing a bedroom but never bed, Charley and Lydia part, he to his comfortable home and job in England, she back to the Sèrail. Yet after returning to familiar surroundings he notices that all is not as it was: he has been changed by this "holiday" and, as he reflects, the bottom has dropped out of his world.
Maugham was deprecated, perhaps due to jealousy of his success, by some literati of his day. Yet he did have a good control of language, solid descriptive skills, and a definite talent for narrative, all evident in "Christmas Holiday", making it a book that rings true and remains with one afterward.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a very enjoyable read, April 1, 2002

By	M. H. Bayliss "book queen" - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Christmas Holiday (Maugham, W. Somerset, Works.) (Hardcover)

Although this may not be the masterpiece of 20th literature, I have to admit that it was a very absorbing read. As we follow Charly, the well-bred perfect English gentlemen, through his week long vacation in Paris, we become ensnared in the life story of the prostitute he befriends and her web of friends and acquaintances. The story itself is interesting in its own right, but what really makes the narrative flow is how Maugham lets us peer into the psyches of various characters, all from different social strata. My personal favorite was Berger, Lydia's husband who despite his rogue behavior was one of the more memorable (and even likable) characters. Simon, Charly's friend was drawn perhaps a bit too extremely, but Maugham does use that to some effect. In any case, a fun read and a good story.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Maughm - Storytelling at its best., July 26, 2003

By	C. Shaw "vandalart" (Phila, PA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Maughm has the unusual talent of baring truths about human nature in a most simplified fashion. His insights into the complexities of human relationships reveal his incredible talent with words. Maughm has been my absolute favorite writer for years...His unpretentious writing style reveals intelligence in the most positive way, extending out to anyone who loves to hear a wonderful story.
"Christmas Holiday" begins and ends in one exhilirating whirlwind, without ever a moment of slight boredom. Maughm writes with a fluidity that cannot be matched by any other writer. He is simply the best at his art - storytelling.