Two Serious Ladies is a 1943 modernist novel by the American writer Jane Bowles. It follows two upper-class women, Christina Goering and Frieda Copperfield, as they descend into debauchery.
‘I am going on a trip. Wait until I tell you about it. It’s terrible.’
Miss Goering, an eccentric, impulsive New York heiress, resides in her house and tries not to be unhappy. Mrs Copperfield, an anxious, dutiful married woman, has a great fear of drowning, of lifts, of intruders in the night. Anything is possible for these two serious ladies. For Miss Goering: a move to a squalid little house on an island and a series of sordid encounters with strangers. For Mrs Copperfield: a trip to Panama, where she abandons her husband for love of a local prostitute. Both go to pieces – and both realize this is something they’ve wanted to do for years.
‘A modern legend . . . A very funny writer’ Truman Capote
‘My favourite book. I can’t think of a modern novel that seems more likely to become a classic’ Tennessee Williams
