8 h 18 minAudiobook4 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when one woman treats love as a game, and everyone around her plays for keeps?
In Booth Tarkington’s The Flirt, Cora Madison knows how to make a man feel chosen. A tilted head, a moment of attention, and another admirer joins her circle. In her Midwestern town, charm draws people close—but Cora gives little thought to what their feelings might cost them.
Her steadier sister, Laura Madison, gives more than she asks and quietly feels the effects of Cora’s choices. Then Valentine Corliss arrives, a glamorous outsider whose polished manner attracts attention. Around them, family life and courtship become a sharp social comedy about admiration, honesty, and the people left carrying the hurt.
What you’ll discover
- Charm with a cost Meet a young woman whose hunger for admiration makes other people’s feelings dangerously easy to overlook.
- A sister in the shadow Follow Laura’s quiet generosity as Cora’s choices reach beyond romance and into the family home.
- The outsider’s polished appeal Watch Valentine Corliss bring the glamour of elsewhere into a town ready to notice him.
- Small-town eyes and ears Enter a closely observed Midwestern world where manners, courtship, and family life invite humor and sympathy.
- When play becomes pain Consider what people owe each other when one treats lightly what another takes to heart.
Who will love it
For readers who love early twentieth century American fiction, family stories and sharp social comedy. Anyone who enjoys character studies of charming but troubling people will feel at home.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Cora Madison charms everyone she meets
- A family lives in her shadow
- Strangers and suitors test the town
- Charm, honesty and the cost of play
Who’s who
- Cora MadisonA bright, charming young woman who loves admiration and plays at romance without thinking much about those who take it seriously.
- Laura MadisonCora's steadier sister, who gives more than she asks and quietly feels the effects of Cora's choices.
- Valentine CorlissA glamorous outsider whose polished manner draws attention in a small town and tests the people around him.
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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Der Flirt
by Booth Tarkington · 1913
Cora Madison collects admirers in a Midwestern town, putting her family's loyalty and her suitors' hearts at stake.
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From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 4
Cora Madison charms everyone she meets
The story centers on Cora Madison, a young woman in a Midwestern town who has a gift for attention. She knows how to tilt her head, how to listen, and how to make a man feel chosen. Tarkington presents this skill with real humor, because the town sees it and the reader sees it too.
Cora does not begin as a villain. She is quick, bright and eager for life, and the novel lets you enjoy her company before it makes you question it. Her admirers are many, and each one believes he has found something special. She enjoys the game, and she rarely asks what it costs the other players.
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What is The Flirt by Booth Tarkington about?
It is a novel about Cora Madison, a charming young woman in a Midwestern town who plays with the affections of her suitors, and about the effects of her behavior on her family and community.
When was The Flirt written?
Booth Tarkington published it in 1913. It is a work of fiction, though it draws on the manners and social life of small Midwestern towns in the early twentieth century.
Who is Cora Madison in The Flirt?
Cora is the title character, a lively young woman who loves attention and flirts freely. The novel follows how her habits affect her sister, her family and the men who admire her.
The author
Booth Tarkington
1869–1946 · American novelist
Booth Tarkington was an American novelist born in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1869. He lived in Indianapolis and spent summers in Kennebunkport, Maine. He wrote Penrod (1914), Seventeen (1916), The Magnificent Ambersons (1918), and Alice Adams (1921). He also wrote plays. He died in Indianapolis in 1946.
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