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Louis Couperus

Small Souls is a novel by Dutch author Louis Couperus. Small Souls is the first of four novels that make up the quartet known as 'The Books of the Small Souls', the master work of the foremost author of Dutch literature
Constance van der Welcke returns to the Hague and the bosom of her family after a twenty year exile caused by a marital indiscretion and divorce from the Dutch ambassador to Rome. Wanting only to be accepted into the family circle again, Constance and her husband Henri find they are the target of gossip that pulls the family apart. As the facade of the family circle begins to crack, the psychological foibles of the brothers and sisters begin to reveal themselves. 
Louis Marie-Anne Couperus (1863 – 1923) was a Dutch novelist and poet. His writings contains a wide variety of genres: lyric poetry, psychological and historical novels, novellas, short stories, fairy tales, feuilletons and sketches. Couperus is considered to be one of the foremost figures in Dutch literature. In 1923, he was awarded the Tollensprijs (Tollens Prize). Unabridged full version.

Phil Benson

Anncona Media AB

The Books of the Small Souls

Small Souls

Alexander Teixeira de Mattos

The Later Life is a novel by Dutch author Louis Couperus. The Later Life is the second of four novels that make up the quartet known as 'The Books of the Small Souls', the master work of the foremost author of Dutch literature
Set in the stifling world of turn of the century Dutch aristocracy, the second volume of the 'Books of the Small Souls' quartet, begins where the first volume ended. Constance Van der Welcke has returned to The Hague after her twenty-year exile for a scandalous affair in Rome. Hoping for acceptance by her family and the society of her former 'set', Constance and her husband Henri are now estranged from the family and have given up all ambitions of acceptance in society. Determined to live quietly, they form new friendships - Henri with Constance's niece, Marianne, and Constance with Henri's eccentric old friend, Max Brauws - that lead each of them on a journey of self-discovery. 
Louis Marie-Anne Couperus (1863 – 1923) was a Dutch novelist and poet. His writings contains a wide variety of genres: lyric poetry, psychological and historical novels, novellas, short stories, fairy tales, feuilletons and sketches. Couperus is considered to be one of the foremost figures in Dutch literature. In 1923, he was awarded the Tollensprijs (Tollens Prize). Unabridged full version.

The Later Life

The Twilight of the Souls is a novel by Dutch author Louis Couperus. The Twilight of the Souls is the third of four novels that make up the quartet known as 'The Books of the Small Souls', the master work of the foremost author of Dutch literature
The third book in Louis Couperus' Books of the Small Souls quartet. The Twilight of the Souls begins some months after the conclusion of The Later Life. Constance Van der Welcke and her husband Henri have settled down to a quieter life in the Hague, sister Bertha and her daughter Marianne have moved to the country, and Mama Van Lowe's Sunday evenings are no longer the gatherings of the whole family they once were. But the family's troubles are far from over. The story shifts to the trials and tribulations of Constance's brothers, Gerrit and Ernst, and Bertha's son and daughter, Henri and Emilie, who have fled together to Paris.
Louis Marie-Anne Couperus (1863 – 1923) was a Dutch novelist and poet. His writings contains a wide variety of genres: lyric poetry, psychological and historical novels, novellas, short stories, fairy tales, feuilletons and sketches. Couperus is considered to be one of the foremost figures in Dutch literature. In 1923, he was awarded the Tollensprijs (Tollens Prize). Unabridged full version.

The Twilight of the Souls

Dr Adriaan is a novel by Dutch author Louis Couperus. Dr Adriaan is the fourth and last of four novels that make up the quartet known as 'The Books of the Small Souls', the master work of the foremost author of Dutch literature
The fourth and final book in Louis Couperus' Books of the Small Souls quartet. Ten years have passed since the conclusion of The Twilight of Souls. Constance and Henri van der Welcke have moved into the van der Welcke family home at Driebergen. Living with them in the dark and gloomy house are Mamma van Lowe, Constance's niece, Emilie, daughter-in-law, Mathilde, and her two young children, together with brother Gerrit's wife Adeline and their 'flaxen-haired tribe' of nine children. As the book opens, the household is keenly anticipating the return of Mathilde's new husband Addie, now Dr, Adriaan, who is kept busy not only by his practice but also by his responsibilities to his growing family.
Louis Marie-Anne Couperus (1863 – 1923) was a Dutch novelist and poet. His writings contains a wide variety of genres: lyric poetry, psychological and historical novels, novellas, short stories, fairy tales, feuilletons and sketches. Couperus is considered to be one of the foremost figures in Dutch literature. In 1923, he was awarded the Tollensprijs (Tollens Prize). Unabridged full version.