Summary of Living
“Living” is a novel set in 1920s Birmingham, portraying the lives of factory workers at an iron foundry. The story centres on Lily Gates and her lover, Bert Jones. Lily struggles to find work and is held back by Craigan, the domineering head of her household. Running alongside this thread is the story of Dick Dupret, who arrives in Birmingham to take over the family business. His attempts to reorganise the factory bring him into conflict with the foreman, Mr Bridges, who fears for his position.
Reasons to read Living
“Living” is widely regarded as a modern classic of English modernist and proletarian literature. It captures Lily’s search for love and her efforts to break free from patriarchal society. The novel adopts elements of the Birmingham dialect, including the omission of articles such as “the” and “a”. Henry Green, the son of a Birmingham industrialist, was a celebrated English novelist, best remembered for his novels “Living”, “Party Going”, and “Loving”.
Setting: Birmingham (England, UK)
Original title: Living
Year of publication: 1929
Nr of pages: 240
