Book Summary and Reviews of The Open Door by Elizabeth Maguire

Book Summary

The Open Door is a luminous and profoundly moving novel inspired by the life of Constance Fenimore Woolson, one of the most widely-read and respected American authors of the nineteenth century. Exploring themes of passion, life, death, friendship, and art, the novel is a vivid evocation of the complex forces behind literary creation.

After years of supporting her mother and a hapless brother through her writing, Constance Woolson finds herself “hungry, ravenous to see and live as much as possible.” She sails for Europe with a letter of introduction to Henry James, the writer she admires above all others. Constance is intoxicated by Europe, Italy in particular. Travel eases her lifelong battle with depression and provides a distraction from the pain of tinnitus which will grow increasingly unbearable. Constance and Henry James eventually meet in Florence. James is delighted by this highly intelligent, independent woman (whom he dubs “Fenimore” as a sign of his esteem) and makes her his confidante. For her part, Constance finds with James “the unequalled joy of never running out of things to say.”

Constance’s courageous, open nature is at odds with James’s more secretive one and friction, transgression, and revenge both private and public are central to their story. Elegantly conceived and life-affirming, The Open Door is an unforgettable portrait of a remarkable woman who lived with passion and refused to accept the narrowing of her world.