The Sea The Sea ;

"A Severed Head (1961) is one of Iris Murdoch{u2019}s most entertaining works, tracing the turbulent emotional journey o... (more)

"A Severed Head (1961) is one of Iris Murdoch{u2019}s most entertaining works, tracing the turbulent emotional journey of Martin Lynch-Gibbon, a smug, prosperous London wine merchant and unfaithful husband, whose life is turned inside out when his wife leaves him for her psychoanalyst. The story takes bedroom farce to a new level of sophistication, with scenes that are both wickedly funny and emblematic of the way momentous moral issues play out in everyday life. The Booker Prize{u2013}winning The Sea, the Sea (1978) is set on the edge of England{u2019}s North Sea, where egotistical Charles Arrowby, a big name in London{u2019}s glittering theatrical world, has retreated into seclusion to write his memoirs. Arrowby{u2019}s plans begin to unravel when he encounters his long-lost first love and finds himself increasingly besieged by his own fantasies, delusions, and obsessions."--Dust jacket. (less)