Cakes and Ale

Cakes and Ale is the novel that William Somerset Maugham said he wished to be remembered for. Published in 1930 and written in the first person singular, Maugham's narrator (and alter-ego) Ashenden exposes the disapproving, moral judgement made by conservative society on the character of Rosie Driffield and opines that it is unjustified.

Her openness, honesty, and sexual freedom are eventually understood by Ashenden, who himself becomes party to her lifestyle, attitudes, and seeming promiscuity. Partly autobiographical, it was highly controversial in its time.

The premise of the novel is based in the literary and arts world, which Somerset Maugham inhabited and contains many of his observations of literature and authors.

Public Domain (P)2026 Chris MacDonnell