Terry

"Terry" by James Hilton is a story set in London during the late 1920s, and it follows the life of M. Terrington, a quiet research lecturer in bacteriology, as he tries to connect with others; in particular, an interesting young woman named Helen Severn. The book has a sad tone to it, and it talks about things like wanting to be close to someone, wanting to do well at your job, and the difficulty of balancing what you want with what people expect of you. At the start of the book, we learn about Terrington, who seems lonely at a dinner party thrown by Geoffrey Severn, a successful lawyer. The book shows how uncomfortable he is around people; however, he finds friendship in the narrator, who becomes curious about him. Later on, the book suggests that Terrington and Helen are becoming closer because she is kind and curious, and this makes him less of a loner. As the story goes on, problems start to arise about being honest, loyal, and what their relationship means, setting the stage for a further look at their love among goals and passions in the context of those times.