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Jean Rhys

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Jean Rhys


Born
in Roseau or Grand Bay, British Leeward Islands (now Dominica)
August 24, 1890

Died
May 14, 1979

Genre
Fiction


Jean Rhys, CBE (born Ella Gwendolyn Rees Williams; 24 August 1890–14 May 1979) was a British novelist who was born and grew up in the Caribbean island of Dominica. From the age of 16, she mainly resided in England, where she was sent for her education. She is best known for her novel Wide Sargasso Sea (1966), written as a prequel to Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre.

She moved to England at the age of 16 years in 1906 and worked unsuccessfully as a chorus girl. In the 1920s, she relocated to Europe, travelled as a Bohemian artist, and took up residence sporadically in Paris. During this period, Rhys, familiar with modern art and literature, lived near poverty and acquired the alcoholism that persisted throughout the rest of her life. Her experie ...more

Combine Editions

Average rating: 3.64 · 136,033 ratings · 13,318 reviews · 67 distinct works • Similar authors
Wide Sargasso Sea
3.59 avg rating — 106,570 ratings — published 1966 — 220 editions
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Good Morning, Midnight
by
3.85 avg rating — 12,641 ratings — published 1939 — 82 editions
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Voyage in the Dark
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3.78 avg rating — 6,080 ratings — published 1934 — 41 editions
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After Leaving Mr. Mackenzie
by
3.90 avg rating — 2,818 ratings — published 1930 — 26 editions
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Quartet
3.69 avg rating — 2,762 ratings — published 1928 — 52 editions
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Smile Please: An Unfinished...
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3.97 avg rating — 1,041 ratings — published 1979 — 29 editions
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Till September Petronella
3.38 avg rating — 958 ratings — published 2018
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The Collected Short Stories
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4.03 avg rating — 592 ratings — published 1987 — 14 editions
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Sleep It Off Lady: Stories
4.10 avg rating — 491 ratings — published 1976 — 10 editions
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Tigers are Better-Looking: ...
3.92 avg rating — 395 ratings — published 1968 — 22 editions
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More books by Jean Rhys…
Quotes by Jean Rhys  (?)
Quotes are added by the Goodreads community and are not verified by Goodreads. (Learn more)

“I like shape very much. A novel has to have shape, and life doesn't have any. ”
― Jean Rhys, Smile Please: An Unfinished Autobiography
tags: life, novels
275 likes
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“You can pretend for a long time, but one day it all falls away and you are alone. We are alone in the most beautiful place in the world...”
― Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea
240 likes
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“Today I must be very careful, today I have left my armor at home.”
― Jean Rhys, Good Morning, Midnight
235 likes
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Polls

August 2016 New School Group Read

 
  44 votes, 25.4%

 
  20 votes, 11.6%

1966, Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys, 176 pages
 
  17 votes, 9.8%

1931, The Waves by Virginia Woolf, 297 pages
 
  16 votes, 9.2%

1997, American Pastoral by Philip Roth, 432 pages
 
  16 votes, 9.2%

 
  14 votes, 8.1%

1963, The Collector by John Fowles, 282 pages
 
  12 votes, 6.9%

1931, The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, 418 pages
 
  9 votes, 5.2%

1990, Possession by A.S. Byatt, 555 pages
 
  8 votes, 4.6%

1996, The Beach by Alex Garland, 436 pages
 
  5 votes, 2.9%

1948, Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton, 320 pages
 
  4 votes, 2.3%

1949, The Way West by A.B. Guthrie Jr., 352 pages
 
  4 votes, 2.3%

1942, The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas, 528 pages
 
  3 votes, 1.7%

1924, Precious Bane by Mary Webb, 328 pages
 
  1 vote, 0.6%

173 total votes
More...

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