The Country House

"The Country House" by John Galsworthy is a story about wealthy English people in the late 1800s, mostly focusing on Mr. Horace Pendyce, who cares a lot about being a good landowner, and the fancy get-together at his big house. The book shows all the complicated relationships between the people visiting, with a spotlight on how social class matters, whether it's better to focus on yourself or the community, and who's falling in love with whom. When the story starts, we meet the important people arriving at Mr. Pendyce's estate, like Hon. Geoffrey Winlow and Mrs. Jaspar Bellew, who shake things up a bit. Mr. Pendyce has strong ideas, especially about farming and how community is better than being selfish, while Mrs. Bellew catches the eye of the men, especially George Pendyce, who starts to like her even though she's already married, and this all leads to interesting social situations, hidden drama, and personal dreams playing out as the story goes on.