Tales of the Cloister

by Elizabeth Garver Jordan

A captivating tale of love, faith, and self-discovery, 'Tales of the Cloister' by Elizabeth G. Jordan follows the journey of a young nun as she navigates the complexities of her heart and soul.

Set within the walls of a cloistered convent, this classic novel explores themes of devotion, duty, and the pursuit of knowledge in a society where women's roles are strictly defined.

A timeless story that continues to resonate with readers today, 'Tales of the Cloister' is a masterful portrayal of human emotion, spirituality, and the search for meaning in life.

252 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1901

About the author

Elizabeth Garver Jordan (May 9, 1865 – February 24, 1947) was an American journalist, author, editor, and suffragist, now remembered primarily for having edited the first two novels of Sinclair Lewis, and for her relationship with Henry James, especially for recruiting him to participate in the round-robin novel The Whole Family. She was editor of Harper's Bazaar from 1900 to 1913.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elizabeth Jordan, an editor of both books and magazines as well as a writer, drew on her childhood convent school education for much of her fiction, most notably in her story collections about May Iverson, a mischievous convent school pupil, and her likely self portrait. A teenage May Iverson nearing graduation has a few cameo appearances in this volume, but the focus here is more on the nuns themselves and their concerns. The tone is at times humorous, but more often tinged with melodramatic religiosity. A couple of the stories have supernatural/mystical elements, as when a nun who cannot be at her mother's deathbed spends the night praying in the chapel and is granted a spiritual visit to the bedside, where her presence is felt by the mother who then dies peacefully. I tend to enjoy fiction with convent settings, but many of these stories were just a little overwrought for my tastes.