A Voyage of Consolation

An American narrator returns to Chicago with enthusiastic memories of England and discovers that her engagement cannot survive the conversation. Arthur Greenleaf Page has encouraged her to acquire British culture, but her admiration for English acquaintances, manners and pronunciation soon irritates him. Sara Jeannette Duncan turns this uncomfortable reunion into comedy through the narrator's cheerful explanations and Arthur's increasingly pointed replies.

A Voyage of Consolation follows Americans travelling in Europe, combining a personal voice with observations of national habits and social pretensions. In one episode, the party visits the Catacombs with two monks whose jokes and salesmanship compete with the visitors' expectations of solemn history. Family exchanges and misunderstandings give the sightseeing its character. The novel suits readers who enjoy travel fiction in which accents, etiquette and the effort to appear cultivated become sources of humour.