The Awakening

The Awakening by Kate Chopin discusses the less publicized side of married life (at least in 1899):  infidelity.  At a summer resort, Mrs. Edna Pontellier meets a certain Robert.  When Robert decides to leave for Mexico, Edna realizes that she loves Robert.  She loses her sense of loyalty to her real husband when she returns home.  She also gets involved with a man named Alcee Arobin.  This conflict between men drives her to desperate measures. 

The language is amazing, injecting romance where you least expect it, such as this description of the sea: 

"The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude; to lose itself in mazes of inward contemplation.

"The voice of the sea speaks to the soul.  The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace." 

[spoiler] This is particularly symbolic, as Edna later drowns in the sea.  So to speak, she listens to the voice of the sea when she enters extramarital relations.  The voice of the sea, while attractive at first, lures her into despair.  It's exactly like the Sirens in Greek mythology.  They sound and appear attractive, but in reality, they're flesh-eating monsters.  [/spoiler]


Doing the numbers: 

Stars: 9

Violence:  1, for although [spoiler] Edna drowns herself afterwards, it is not at all graphic.  [/spoiler]

Romance: 7, since that's the main concern of the book.  Nothing graphic was described. 

Language: 0

Appropriate for:  teenagers