Phyllis Bottome's long life of romantically tinged adventure, travel, accomplishment, and success is unrivaled by the female protagonists of her considerable body of fiction, even though many of those characters are modeled after the independence-minded New Woman of the first half of the twentieth century. Bottome was certainly one of the more prolific writers of any era, publishing between 1902 and 1962 thirty-three novels, twelve collections of short stories and novellas, three volumes of autobiography, travel books, and collections of essays on such topics as feminism, psychology, war, and memoirs of celebrated friends. Bottome's life and writing intersect to form an historical and literary record of an exceptional personality who cared deeply about humanity and modern ideas in the period that encompasses the world wars.

During her lifetime Bottome's novels were popular and critical successes. She traveled widely and counted as mentors and friends many of the creative elite, political...