| Synopsis: |
This novel, a bestseller in the 1920s and the basis of a popular 1924 film, brings together such unlikely topics as medical rejuvenation treatments, eugenics, American youth culture, and cross-generational relationships. The beautiful American widow of a Hungarian count, Mary Zattiany is fifty-eight years old; after receiving experimental 'rejuvenation treatments' and returning to America, however, she is often mistaken for a woman in her twenties, and falls in love with a much younger man. Set in an era fixated on youth, beauty, and pleasure, but focusing on the experiences of an aging woman, Black Oxen offers a fresh perspective on the Jazz Age. |