Other Fiction Tarkington, Booth: Alice Adams (Illustrated). v1, 14 February 2012

[GrannyGrump]

Booth Tarkington won his second Pulitzer Prize in 1922 for this novel. It was adapted as a film in 1923 by Rowland V. Lee and, more famously, in 1935 by George Stevens. The story is set in a lower-middle-class household in an unnamed town in the Midwest shortly after World War I. The narrative centers around the character of a young woman, Alice Adams, who aspires to climb the social ladder and win the affections of a wealthy young man named Arthur Russell. (source: Wikipedia)
. . . Ultimately, her ambitions are tempered by the realities of her situation, which she learns to accept with grace and style. Alice's resiliency of spirit makes her one of Booth Tarkington's most compelling characters. (Goodreads)

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4 full-page illustrations.

I read this many years ago as a young girl, and have less patience with Alice's pretenses now. But she is a likeable character --- her struggle at a large fancy party to keep up a brave front is both funny and full of pathos.

Hope you enjoy it!