Vanity Fair (Collins Classics)

Description

A masterpiece of social satire, featuring one of literature's best-loved characters, Becky Sharp. Ruthless social climber and irrepressible anti-hero Becky Sharp will do anything to raise her position in Society, from impoverished orphan to woman of means. Clever, lively and resourceful, Becky is the total opposite of her naive and sentimental schoolmate Amelia Sedley, a pampered yet good-natured girl from a wealthy family. As both women pursue love and life in London, against the background of the Napoleonic Wars, Thackeray paints a vivid portrait of decadent Regency England and satirises its corruption and flaws to delightful effect.

William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863) was a British author and novelist, renowned for his satirical works, particularly Vanity Fair. Originally published as a serial in 20 parts, it was immediately hailed as a literary masterpiece, winning praise from contemporaries such as Charlotte Bronte.

'A bravura performance by a writer at the top of his game' Guardian 'A Titan... a purely original mind' Charlotte Bronte 'The greatest novel about Waterloo, and one that is just as relevant 200 years later' Daily Telegraph