Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited follows Charles Ryder's obsession with the aristocratic Flyte family and their magnificent estate, Brideshead, exploring themes of faith, love, and the decline of the English upper class. Through Charles's relationships with the charming Sebastian Flyte and his family, Waugh creates a nostalgic, bittersweet portrait of a vanishing world. The novel becomes both love story and meditation on Catholicism, proving that Waugh's most romantic work is also his most serious and that some houses hold entire worlds within their walls.

WHY WE PICKED IT: Because Waugh wrote the definitive novel about English aristocratic decline, making Brideshead itself a character as important as Sebastian or Julia. This classic reminds us that Sebastian's teddy bear Aloysius is iconic, that Catholic guilt permeates everything, and that nostalgia can be both beautiful and dangerous.

DETAILS: • Author: Evelyn Waugh • Publisher: Little Brown and Company • Format: Hardcover • Publication Date: December 11, 2012 • ISBN: 9780316216449 • Ships direct from distributor in 3–7 business days