8 h 39 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 8 h 39 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the friend you trust with your heart understands everyone’s feelings except his own?
In Henry James’s Confidence, two American friends in Europe face a delicate question of love. Gordon Wright, earnest and scientifically minded, wants Bernard Longueville’s opinion of Angela Vivian as a possible wife. Bernard enjoys painting, travel, and watching people. Giving advice seems easier than making commitments of his own.
In Baden-Baden, conversation and leisure bring Bernard close to Angela, her mother, and their lively companion Blanche Evers. Yet Angela’s reserve resists his easy judgments. Gordon wants certainty, while Bernard is slow to question his own reactions. As visits and journeys draw them together, friendship gives a personal opinion the weight of authority.
What you’ll discover
- A confident observer Watch Bernard judge other people while his own feelings complicate what he sees.
- A heart under scrutiny Meet Angela Vivian, whose intelligence and reserve make easy conclusions difficult to trust.
- Friendship with real stakes Follow Gordon’s search for an answer that may shape his choice of a wife.
- Leisure and close observation Enter a German resort town where visits and conversations make personal judgments matter.
- Quiet comedy of misreading Enjoy clever people misunderstanding one another as James explores the limits of good intentions.
Who will love it
This book suits readers who enjoy sparkling conversation, social comedy and love stories with a puzzle at their heart. It will please anyone fond of European travel and of friends who misread each other.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A sketch in a sunny Sienese corner
- A friend's odd request from Baden-Baden
- Faces on the Kursaal terrace
- What Gordon wants to know
- Talk, sparring and the watchful mother
- Left in charge of the ladies
- A verdict, a note and a sudden departure
- A strange marriage and an exile
- Seaside surprise and a discovery in the dark
Who’s who
- Bernard LonguevilleA handsome, clever, idle American who loves his own company and cannot resist a pretty puzzle, and who is asked to judge the woman his friend loves.
- Gordon WrightBernard's loyal friend, a rich, honest man of science who wants to marry with his eyes open and trusts reason over feeling.
- Angela VivianA beautiful, proud and quick-witted young woman who hides her feelings behind paradox and refuses to be studied or judged.
- Mrs. VivianAngela's anxious, gentle mother, a New England widow with a worldly streak, who wants to see her daughter well settled.
- Blanche EversA pretty, restless young girl who chatters constantly, loves admiration and fine clothes, and says she can take care of herself.
- Captain LovelockA handsome, penniless English officer with an auburn beard who gambles, borrows money and admires Blanche.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 9 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
Vertrauen
by Henry James · 1879
A friend's letter draws a clever idler to Baden-Baden, where he must judge a woman he once sketched on an Italian terrace.
Medium level5–10 hours to readDeutsch
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
What if your closest friend asked you to spy on the woman he hopes to marry? In Confidence, a novel by Henry James, Bernard Longueville is charming, idle and clever.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A sketch in a sunny Sienese corner
The story opens in early April. Bernard Longueville lingers in Siena, young, handsome and well off. He loves his own company most of all, and the narrator warns that his nature holds several contradictions.
One morning he paints on a quiet terrace by the town wall. A young woman in a gray dress with a crimson petticoat steps out of a church and leans on the parapet. Bernard decides she improves his picture, so he paints her in.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 9 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1879
- Language
- Deutsch
- Reading time
- 5 h 35 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
James, Henry. Confidence. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/confidence.
James, H. (2026). Confidence. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/confidence (Original work published 1879)
James, Henry. Confidence. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/confidence.
@book{james2026confidence,
author = {James, Henry},
title = {Confidence},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/confidence},
note = {First published 1879}
}
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Vertrauen
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Confidence by Henry James about?
It tells how Bernard Longueville, a clever, idle American, is asked by his friend Gordon Wright to size up the woman Gordon wants to marry. The study goes wrong, and it changes both friends, their loves and their trust in each other.
Who are the main characters in Confidence?
Bernard Longueville and Gordon Wright are old college friends. Angela Vivian and her mother live abroad on a modest income. Blanche Evers is a chattering young girl, and Captain Lovelock is an English officer who gambles and admires her.
Where does Confidence take place?
Each place gives a lively setting for conversation, strolls and drives.
The author
Henry James
1843–1916 · American British novelist
Henry James was born in New York City in 1843. He settled in England in 1876 and became a British citizen in 1915. He wrote novels, stories, plays, and travel books. His works include Daisy Miller (1878), The Turn of the Screw (1898), and The Ambassadors (1903). He died in London in 1916.
More by Henry James
Alle Bücher des Autors ansehenMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
