I love everything Edith Wharton. This one is different from her others, although she's really a rebel at heart in all her works. This novel is antiwar, and delves into George's point of view as well as his family's about his going to the war. They attempt to use their wealth and status to protect him. It's an interesting read.

A Son at the Front is typical of the emotionally charged, overblown, hyper patriotic novel typical of the contemporary World War I era. Reflective of Wharton’s time in Europe, the novel is unapologetically pro-French and concerned primarily with the reasons and degree to which American expatriates of varying backgrounds and circumstances feel obligated to join the battle, and an evaluation of the value of a variety of roles in the war effort. Unfortunately, Wharton succumbs to the sin of “telling not showing” for much of the story, though what she info dumps is interesting.

This is not Wharton’s best work in terms of style, and I question the realism of some of Wharton’s characterization and conclusions about the motivations and responses of people in a wartime setting, however, it is still an important psychological study of the contemporary views of the soldiers of World War I and those left at home.

I wasn't even aware that Edith Wharton, one of the very best writers of her era, wrote a novel about the Great War. It's fair to say that there's a good reason why The Age of Innocence and The House of Mirth are familiar to any lover of classic fiction and A Son at the Front is not.

Not that it's a bad novel. Wharton didn't do those, she was far too talented. However, she made some essential errors in this story, most notably with the choice of her protagonist, a selfish and largely dislikeable portrait painter named John Campton.

A self-absorbed divorcée, Campton is blissfully unaware of the impending conflict. His sole recognition of the pervading fear in his adopted city of Paris is noticing the "war-funk" on the faces of those he paints, but can't believe that it will happen, even up until the day of the announcement.

All he cares about is an upcoming holiday with his son George, who he hasn't seen much of in years due to the young man being educated abroad. This was another mistake by Wharton in my view; I understand that upper middle-class parents often had their children educated in the best schools overseas in those days, but the fact that he hardly even knows his son makes it hard to warm to him as a representative father fearing for the safety of his mobilisable son on the advent of war.

Wharton made a brave decision to make Campton so essentially selfish, braver still for making no bones about the full extent of his aversion to sacrifice, which at the outset went far beyond his familial desire to keep his son out of the army:

'Secretly, too, he feared the demands that would be made on him if he once let himself be drawn into the network of war charities. Tiresome women would come and beg for money, or for pictures for bazaars ... it could only result in his turning out work that would injure his reputation and reduce his sales after the war.'

Campton's ex-wife and her second husband, neither of which he has much respect for, are better placed to get George a cushy job far behind the frontline, yet he resents their interventions, even if they should manage to succeed where he has failed. Again, there is a dogged honesty to this, I can well imagine a bitter divorcée behaving this way, but it undercuts his love for his son.

George has other ideas anyway, secretly manoeuvring himself into the trenches. Campton's expatriate friends, who he doesn't even like very much (another mark against him), volunteer for the war effort, working for the ambulance service, nursing and aiding refugees.

Inevitably as the war continues and the sons and nephews of his associates begin to die, Campton begins to change his mind about the nature of a parent's sacrifice. The death of a talented young artist further leads him to reflect on his own aloofness.

Wharton undoubtedly made Campton an unsympathetic character initially in order to have events and the self-sacrificing attitude of his own son bring about an apotheosis. Maybe if the novel had been published during the war this approach would have made more sense as an exercise in shaming even the most selfish of parents to the needs of the hour, but it came out in 1921.

It's an Edith Wharton novel, so you know that tragedy awaits for the denouement. If only Campton's pettiness didn't leave a bitter taste.

I liked her characters (for the most part) and her plot, but something about her writing just does not grip me. I've been coming back to this book off and on for over a year, and I've finally managed to plow through it.

Still, I'd take this over "House of Mirth" ANY DAY.

Since finishing this yesterday, the story has stuck with me. I’m changing from four stars to five.

An American artist John Campton is living in Paris at the start of WW1. His ex wife is also there along with her wealthy husband. When war looms near, there is both internal and external conflict about his only son being part of that war. A moving story that explores the son’s different relationships and their reasons for & against him taking part in the war becomes a momentous chapter of Campton’s life.

This book is honest, raw and heartfelt. It is also annoying, angering and frustrating. I loved every word.

Yes, I loved this book and appreciated the characters. Like every Edith Wharton novel, each character represented an important aspect to the story. Every personality was skillfully adapted and developed to be an integral part.

It disturbed me seeing readers giving bad reviews because they didn’t like the main character John Campton. This was a man; a divorced father who has experienced both hardships and successes in life. Those experiences were both self-inflicted and induced by others, but they are his nonetheless. Was he like-able? Like all of us, sometimes he was and sometimes he wasn’t. However, I don’t understand the hate. Those experiences were what shaped him and his beliefs. Therefore, inspiring his thoughts and actions. To give a book bad reviews because you don’t like a character, their actions or the outcome is a bit disturbing to me. John Campton was a man who was struggling at times while trying to be the best HE could as a father.

To me, it’s not about wanting the story to go your way or tell an author how it should be written. If you don’t like it, write one yourself. Here’s your chance to make that perfect book in your eyes that only YOU can do.

Edith Wharton is one of my favorite writers. Her ability to lay bare her characters and their humanity is remarkable to me. Allowing a writer to take you on a journey is a choice. Lucky for you, that ride can end any time you want. Let others decide for themselves.

Funny enough, much of this book was about inflicting your thoughts and actions on others. It also explored how your worst moments can also be some of the most important - but it’s a choice. There are teaching moments throughout a persons life and this book displayed that most beautifully.

I picked up “A Son at the Front” with some trepidation. Minor Henry James is better than most novels, but minor Edith Wharton is … minor. I love Wharton’s great works, but find her lesser know books to be dreck.
“A Son at he Front” is a pleasant surprise. This tale of a father, an American artist in France, worrying about his son fighting at the front during WWI is complex, emotionally stirring and insightful about familial love. It is rare to read a war story from the vantage of a father’s perspective, and Wharton has us share his desire to at first protect his son (avoid the front lines) and then slowly love and respect the fact that the young man needs to honor and respect the sacrifices he embraces for the sake of his country. Of course, this is Wharton, and predictably all things end sadly. But I wasn’t unhappy I took a chance with this novel!
It isn’t as good as her best work, but it deserves to be better known.

Didn’t read. Just wanted to get it off the list.

My rating: 3.5
A compelling story about the effects of war on those who are left behind. This is Wharton's anti-war statement, but she does it in the guise of a novel which raises questions/issues to ponder. Not well received at the time of its publication, it certainly does provide a thought provoking look back in time.

Heartbreaking and Real

I last read Wharton in college. Found this novel by chance and remembered how I loved Ethan Frome. A perfect picture of a father's love and struggle with the man his son becomes. Too many memorable lines to cite just one. Much of a time, but not dated.

It is such a thrill to discover there is an Edith Wharton book I have never heard of - akin to discovering a new Jane Austen!
Like all her books, this one is a masterpiece of social observation and a deep-delving investigation into the human psyche.
Campton, an American artist living in Paris, waits for his son George to arrive from America. The two plan an extensive trip round Europe together, but the beginning of WW1 puts paid to their plans. An accident of birth means that George is conscripted into the French military, and no sooner have father and son re-established their filial bonds than they are separated.
Campton and his wife are divorced. His ex wife Julia has remarried - another American but this one fabulously wealthy and very influential in Paris society. The book explores the intense jealously and rivalry between George’s father and step-father, uneasily united in their efforts to keep George from the front by any means at their disposal.
The great pathos and tragedy of this book lies in the inevitability of its outcome. A son at the front rarely had any alternative outcome that his loss. But it tracks the progress of the war as experienced by people in Paris, their efforts to raise money, support refugees and tend the wounded, commiserate with the bereaved and to carry on living some kind of life in spite of the chaos that prevails. In fact, in that, it resonates very relevantly with the present day, and as a step-parent myself I recognised the delicate dance of rights and restraint that the role entails.
I love the unhurried nature of Wharton’s writing, her deft description of character, her beautiful dialogue as her characters grope towards an understanding of each other - and themselves.

It takes a while to get into the story since the writing style is very different than that of modern writers. But I am a fan of Edith Wharton and she does a good job of depicting Europe, World War I and the friends and family on the home front.

Edith Wharton lived in Paris during World War I, and with her incredible talent she paints a picture of the city and the people, and how they adapted to the the changes the war imposed on everyone and everything. One young man goes off to war and his parents pride for his bravery and horrible fear that he may not return is a scene played out countless times with families everywhere. Wharton was a correspondent and a homefront volunteer and her insights and descriptions give the reader a feel for the emotions of the time and the people who lived through it.