The Awakening

Book 46 of my 2019 Reading Challenge

read on July 9

The Awakening

by Kate Chopin

Summary (via the book jacket)
published 1899

In the summer of her twenty-eighth year, Edna Pontellier and her children spend the summer in Grand Isle, an idyllic coastal community on the Gulf of Mexico. Away from her husband and the sweltering heart of 1890s' New Orleans, Edna releases herself to her deepest yearnings, plunging into an illicit liaison that reawakens her long dormant desires, enflames her heart, and, eventually, blinds her to all else.

Written over one hundred years ago, The Awakening is the compelling story of an extraordinarily modern woman struggling against the constraints of marriage and motherhood, and slowly discovering the power of her own sexuality. Edna's search for her own individuality touches the hearts of women who've learned the value of freedom and happiness, and her story is now regarded as a classic in American fiction.

My Opinion
5 stars

Before I started this book I wondered if it was going to actually be good or if it was regarded as a classic because of how daring the material was at the time it was published.  I was very pleased to discover it stands the test of time; it was absorbing and I read it in one sitting.

The edition I read was published in 1972 and it had footnotes to help explain outdated words/phrases.  That kept the reading seamless and was a really helpful addition.