Hugh Walpole was one of the most prolific writers of his day. He lived the sophisticated life of London to the fullest, yet retained throughout his life a certain boyish enthusiasm and naiveté that are reflected in his writings. He was born the first of three children of George Henry Somerset and Mildred Barham Walpole on 13 March 1884 in New Zealand, where his father was a vicar of St. Mary's Church, Parnell, Auckland. His family soon moved to New York, where his father taught at the General Theological Seminary, and in 1893, Walpole was sent to England to begin an English public school education, first in Truro, then in Marlow and at King's School, Canterbury. In 1898, his family returned to Durham from the United States, and Walpole became a day student at Durham School, a place he heartily disliked.

He was an avid reader and was early influenced by...