Civil Wars

"Goodman aims to show the many ways in which American novelists have scrutinized the norms of everyday life for clues about character, history, morality, social change, and national identity... Her discussions of William Dean Howells, Ellen Glasgow, and Jessie Fauset are particularly cogent."

"Foregrounding questions of taste and manners leads Goodman to a number of new perspectives on the literary production of her subjects."

"Goodman presents an original and compelling argument that forces readers to acknowledge that the novel of manners—which typically focused on attitudes toward race, class, and national identity—did in fact play a central role in American literary and cultural history. This book is notable for its insight and originality."

"Intelligent and superbly written. This book is fluid and consistently animated with fresh ideas. It will be welcomed by the community of scholars concerned with the so-called novel of manners in America because it refines the definition of this genre, without blurring its differences from the naturalistic novel. Civil Wars is an acute and enormously instructive literary analysis and history."