The Return of the Prodigal

A wealthy passenger in a third-class railway carriage puzzles the clergyman sitting opposite him. Stephen K. Lepper has made his fortune in Chicago and returned to England, eager to surprise the mother and two sisters he has not seen for fifteen years. Their conversation turns to another man's repeated fresh starts, drinking and costly claims on his family's patience. This opening gives May Sinclair's title story its mixture of comedy, confidence and uncomfortable family history.

The volume brings together eight stories, including The Gift, Appearances and The Wrackham Memoirs. Another excerpt follows Wrackham's anxiety about his reputation: a large public, a Tudor mansion and two motorcars cannot settle his doubts about lasting recognition. Sinclair finds revealing tensions in ordinary conversation, setting what people say about themselves beside what others observe. Readers interested in social comedy and the pull of money, family obligations and public approval will find those concerns closely examined here.