Prelude

One of Katherine Mansfield's most important works, Prelude established her reputation as a master of short fiction. It is accompanied here by its continuation pieces At the Bay and The Doll's House. A large, seemingly loving family, the Burnells lead an idyllic life, with the children free to play at will, and with enough adults on hand to lavish love upon them. Yet alongside this innocent evocation of childhood bliss, another aspect of the household is delicately and unmistakably laid bare as Mansfield exposes the true nature of the family. Pretensions and insecurities rise to the surface in a series of vivid, all too real impressions of domestic life. The result is an exquisite rendering of childhood, memory, and understanding. A key figure in the Modernist movement, Katherine Mansfield is most remarkable for having perfected the art of the short story.