An American Family: A Novel of Today

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An American Family (1918) is a novel by Henry Kitchell Webster. Written at the height of Websters career as a popular author of magazine serials, An American Family is a story of war, ambition, and tragedy. Exploring the effects of the burgeoning labor movement on American industry, Webster illustrates the psychological effects of conflict and betrayal on members of a wealthy family. As the third son of a large, upper-class family, Hugh Corbett has always struggled to prove himself. Despite the ambitions of his siblings, Hugh finds himself longing for a life outside of the family business. As owners of a successful factory in Chicago, their position has increasingly been at odds with the needs of their impoverished laborers, many of whom have begun to agitate for higher pay and better rights. Just as this crisis reaches a boiling point, it becomes clear that the United States is preparing to enter the Great War, thrusting a nation into conflict with Europe and deepening its own divisions. Meanwhile, Hugh meets Helena, a committed anarchist who exposes for him the inequities suffered by those the Corbett family employs. When a strike threatens to bring down the business, Hugh is forced to make a choice: should he prove his allegiance to his class and loved ones, or do what he knows to be right for the greater good of humanity. Sweeping in scope and intensely emotional, An American Family is a story of history on a human scale. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Henry Kitchell Websters An American Family is a classic of American literature reimagined for modern readers.

Author Bio

Henry Kitchell Webster (1875-1932) was an American novelist and short story writer. Born in Evanston, Illinois, Webster graduated from Hamilton College in 1897 before taking a job as a teacher at Union College in Schenectady, New York. Alongside coauthor Samuel Merwin, Webster found early success with such novels as The Short Line War (1899) and Calumet K (1901), the latter a favorite of Ayn Rands. Websters stories, often set in Chicago, were frequently released as serials before appearing as bestselling novels, a formula perfected by the author throughout his hugely successful career. By the end of his life, Webster was known across the United States as a leading writer of mystery, science fiction, and realist novels and stories.