The Old Wives' Tale - Arnold Bennett

• This trilogy binds together three of Bennett's most notable works of fiction: The Old Wives' Tale, The Grand Babylon Hotel and Anna of the Five Towns.

The Old Wives' Tale

"With psychological acuity and compassionate humour, Bennett weaves through the lives of two sisters from the 1840s to 1905, one in a small Midlands town, the other in Paris," -- The Sunday Times of London:

The Old Wives' Tale tells the story of sisters Sophia and Constance, who grow up in their bedridden father's shop. While Sophia elopes with a travelling salesman and Constance marries Mr Povey, who works in the shop. Their lives take very different paths until they are reunited once again, in the home that they once lived in as children.

The Grand Babylon Hotel

American millionaire Theodore Racksole and his daughter are staying at the exclusive Grand Babylon Hotel when Nella asks for a steak and beer for supper. Her order is refused. however, so her father buys the entire hotel to give her what she desires. Stranger things are happening in the hotel, however... including the disappearance of Miss Spencer, the pretty, hotel clerk.

Anna of the Five Towns

Anna Tellwright's life is controlled by her father and the Methodist church. She struggles for freedom and independence, wanting to help Willie Price whose father killed himself after becoming bankrupt. She is courted by the town's most eligible bachelor but does her heart already belong to Willie?