The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone

This small gem of a book is a brilliant study of an ageing star living in Rome after world war 2. it tracks her gradual decline as her sense of herself is deteriorates through a sad set of circumstances .It is absolutely beautifully written and unforgettable . It is a pity Tennesse Williams is so little read these days . The collection of short stories is also brilliant . Neither have really dated and i would hope a new audience will rediscover a brilliant writer who leaves many modern writers looking like amateurs

Wonderful, thought provoking, short novel by Tennessee Williams. This was apparently one of his first and it immediately draws you in. This is a short story so you can easily finish it in one or two days.

Two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Tennessee Williams abandons his southern roots by setting his fascinating first novel (1950) in Rome, just after World War II. An American actress, recently widowed, decides to live in Rome after retiring from the stage. Karen Stone, now in her fifties, is still nursing her ego after attempting but failing to be a convincing Juliet, the critics having cruelly pointed out her advanced age. Sensitive about the loss of her beauty and her plummeting career, Mrs. Stone plans to lead a less visible life in Rome. Making the acquaintance of the Contessa, a friendly but cruelly manipulative and impoverished woman who introduces her to a series of beautiful young men, Mrs. Stone allows herself to be escorted but refuses the young men's other favors. Even with Paolo, the most attractive of her escorts, she maintains her dignity, until, after a particularly bitter argument, she realizes that she can use him for sexual pleasure, without guilt or remorse, since there is no possibility of unforeseen biological consequences. As Mrs. Stone explores her sexuality in an effort to prove her desirability, Williams is remarkably candid about the characters' relationships. Sensitively, and with an expert eye for the vulnerability of women of a "certain age," he explores Mrs. Stone's relationship with a long-time female friend, her seemingly passionless marriage to Tom Stone, her budding sexual liberation, and Paolo's relationships with other men and women. Gradually, Mrs. Stone becomes more dependent on Paolo for emotional support while Paolo demands more of Mrs. Stone's financial support, until they both reach breaking point. Williams's vibrant dialogue successfully reveals the tensions and expectations of Mrs. Stone, the Contessa, and Paolo through their conversations, but Williams is also startlingly adept at incorporating symbols which add to the intensity of the internal action. The seasons, the imagery of birds, and even Mrs. Stone's name enhance the plot and themes, while the action ironically mimics the Romeo/Juliet tragedy. Small details add to this irony--a handsome young man follows Mrs. Stone, and as she gazes at him from the top floor of her apartment near the Spanish Steps, the Romeo/Juliet balcony scene comes to mind. Though the novel is sometimes melodramatic, it never becomes maudlin, and the conclusion, totally different from the two films based upon it, involves an emotional resolution, rather than dramatic action. n Mary Whipple

Tennessee Williams is, of course, one of the country's master dramatists. So much emphasis is placed on his plays, however, that it is easy to forget that Williams--poet, novelist, essayist--was a true man of letters. While it lacks the intensity of "Streetcar" or the heartbreaking tenderness of "The Glass Menagerie," "The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone" is vintage Williams just the same. Williams once said that he was interested in characters who "were frightened of life. . .who were desperate to reach out to another person." Karen Stone, a lonely, fragile woman who is desperate to "stop the drift" following the death of her husband and her own fading youth and beauty, is such a character. It will never be considered one of his masterpieces, but it will touch your heart in a way that only Williams can.

Mr. Williams has managed, yet again, to create a tragic, flawed and brave heroine who stands unique amongst his other memorable female portrayals. Newly widowed, the over-indulged and aging socialite Mrs. Stone travels to Rome where, amongst her circle of charmed and wealthy peers, she discovers truths about her own inner life as well as the seedy underbelly of the society in which she'd til now played a prominent and sneering role. A developing, doomed relationship with a young Italian call-boy (controlled by an equally memorable female pimp) uncovers Mrs. Stone's latent passion and lonliness, leading ultimately to a melodramatic submission to the nihilism of anonymous sex. The depth of Mrs. Stone's passion combined with her reserved dignity represent (to me) the singular beauty and subtle power increasingly inherent in women as we grow older. A beauty and power that are still tragically devalued and discouraged by our society today, more than 30 years after this timeless prose was written. Read this book for yourself, and for all of the women in your life.