Humbug by E. M. Delafield

E. M. Delafield's Humbug is a sharp, ironic novel about the damage done when sentiment, duty, and "goodness" are used to excuse cruelty. The Stellenthorpe family seems warm and respectable, but beneath its polished surface Eleanor and Philip's well-meaning blindness creates a household of denial, favoritism, and emotional harm, especially for their daughters: brilliant, fiery Lily and frail, peace-loving Yvonne. Lily grows up ashamed of her own anger because she keeps trying to defend Vonnie from the adults' empty promises and unequal treatment. Her fear for Yvonne's recurring earaches becomes a nightly torment, and when she finally breaks the rules to summon help, the practical nurse brings immediate relief where her parents' moralizing has failed. Yet the family's habits of guilt and misreading remain unchanged, and Lily is left burdened by secret thoughts of escape, even death, as a way out of suffering. As Lily enters young womanhood, Nicholas Aubray's attention brings romance, self-doubt, and the first stirrings of adult choice, while Aunt Clotilde and Philip watch her future with anxious, patronizing interest. Delafield turns this domestic drama into a biting critique of parenthood, religion, and emotional hypocrisy. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.