The Story of an African Farm
'The Story of an African Farm' Summary
The novel details the lives of three characters, first as children and then as adults – Waldo, Em and Lyndall – who live on a farm in the Karoo region of South Africa. The story is set in the middle- to late-19th century – the First Boer War is alluded to, but not mentioned by name. The book is semi-autobiographical: in particular, the two principal protagonists (Waldo and Lyndall) display strong similarities to Schreiner's life and philosophy.
The book was first published in 1883 in London, under the pseudonym Ralph Iron. It quickly became a best-seller, despite causing some controversy over its frank portrayal of freethought, feminism, premarital sex and pregnancy out of wedlock, and transvestitism.
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
EnglishPublished In
1883Author
Olive Schreiner
South Africa
Olive Schreiner was a South African author, anti-war campaigner and intellectual. She is best remembered today for her novel The Story of an African Farm (1883), which has bee...
More on Olive SchreinerDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books
The Grand Inquisitor by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
"The Grand Inquisitor" is a poem (a story within a story) inside Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel The Brothers Karamazov (1879–1880). It is recited by Ivan K...
Woodbarrow Farm by Jerome K. Jerome
The book tells the story of a family who decides to leave their city life behind and start a new life on a farm. The novel follows the journey of the...
The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder
In the picturesque land of Peru, a bridge hangs suspended between worlds. "The Bridge of San Luis Rey" by Thornton Wilder beckons readers into a realm...
The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless, Vol. 3 by Eliza Haywood
Betsy Thoughtless is about marriage, rather than dealing with courtship and thus differs from the type of domestic writing that would develop in the 1...
Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Herland is a utopian novel from 1915, written by feminist Charlotte Perkins Gilman. The book describes an isolated society composed entirely of women,...
Flowers of the Farm by Arthur Owens Cooke
"To-day we are at Willow Farm again, and I want to show you some of the flowers that grow there. I do not mean those which Mrs. Hammond, the farmer's...
The Magic Mountain (Volume One) by Thomas Mann
Step into a world of intrigue and intellectual exploration in "The Magic Mountain" by Thomas Mann, Volume One. As the world teeters on the brink of Wo...
The Courtship of Susan Bell by Anthony Trollope
This delightful novel, takes readers on a journey of love, relationships, and the complexities of courtship. Originally published in 1860, "The Courts...
Mizora: A Prophecy. by Mary E Bradley Lane
What if there was a land where women ruled the world? In Mizora: A Prophecy, Mary E. Bradley Lane depicts a feminist utopia in the heart of the Earth...
My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin
My Brilliant Career is a 1901 novel written by Miles Franklin. It is the first of many novels by Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin (1879–1954), one of...
Reviews for The Story of an African Farm
No reviews posted or approved, yet...