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When Victor Gollancz published "Rebecca" in August 1938, the firm ordered a first printing of 20,000 copies. Within a month it had sold more than twice that number. By 1965 sales had reached 2.8 million, and the novel has stayed in print ever since 1938.
That kind of staying power is rare. If you are looking for a long, absorbing novel for a quiet weekend, or a book your reading group can live inside for a few weeks, "Rebecca" is a strong candidate. This introduction covers the author, the opening chapters, and how to choose an edition. It stops before the story gets going.
Who wrote it, and when
Daphne du Maurier was born in London on 13 May 1907 into a family steeped in art and theatre. Her father, Sir Gerald du Maurier, was an actor-manager, and her grandfather, George du Maurier, was a cartoonist for the magazine Punch and the author of the novel "Trilby."
The family kept a summer home at Fowey in Cornwall. She published her first novel, "The Loving Spirit," in 1931 and "Jamaica Inn" in 1936. "Rebecca" followed in 1938. Du Maurier said it grew out of her memories of Menabilly, a house near Fowey, and of Cornwall, and out of her relationship with her father. She called it a study in jealousy. In 1943 she leased Menabilly and lived there until 1969.
She went on to write "My Cousin Rachel" (1951) and the short stories "The Birds" (1952) and "Don't Look Now" (1971). In 1969 she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, an honour that gave her the title "Dame." She died at her home in Par, Cornwall, on 19 April 1989, aged 81.
Where the story begins
The narrator is a young woman in her early twenties, and she never gives us her name. She is in Monte Carlo as the paid companion of Mrs. Van Hopper, a wealthy American on holiday.
There she meets Maxim de Winter, a wealthy widower of 42 whose wife, Rebecca, died a year earlier. After about two weeks together, the two marry. The narrator becomes the second Mrs. de Winter and goes with him to Manderley, his estate in Cornwall.
The household there is run by the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, who was once Rebecca's lady's maid, the servant who personally attended the mistress of the house. The new Mrs. de Winter takes her place in the home where Rebecca lived before her.
That is where we leave her. The rest is yours to discover.
Choosing an edition
Because "Rebecca" has stayed in print since 1938, it has appeared from more than one publisher. In the UK, Virago publishes it in its Virago Modern Classics series: a paperback on sale from 16 July 2015 (ISBN 9780349006574), with a hardcover edition (ISBN 9781844088799) listed on the same page. Quoting an ISBN is the simplest way to make sure a bookshop or library finds the exact edition you want. This is a long novel you will carry around for several evenings, so pick the format you will enjoy holding.
Reading it, alone or with a group
Start with the jealousy. Du Maurier herself called the book a study in jealousy. Keep that phrase in mind as you read. It is less a summary than a lens: watch how much weight the narrator gives to small remarks, looks, and silences, and how her own uncertainty colours what she sees.
Talk about the missing name. A reading group could spend a whole meeting on one choice. The woman telling the story has no name, while the title belongs to a woman who is already gone. Why would an author build a novel that way, and how does it change the way you read?
Know what "Gothic" means here. The novel is classed as both romance and Gothic fiction. Gothic fiction is a kind of story built on unease and fear, usually set in castles or great old houses. Its success helped revive interest in the Gothic romance as a form, so you are reading one of the books that set the pattern for many that followed.
Pair it with "Jane Eyre." Critics have long noted parallels between the two novels. A group that reads "Jane Eyre" first and "Rebecca" second gets two excellent discussions and a third one comparing them.
Notice how it was received. In the United States it was named favourite novel of 1938 in the National Book Award voting by members of the American Booksellers Association, so this was a vote among booksellers rather than a jury of critics. In 2003 it came 14th in the BBC's Big Read, a UK survey that asked the public to name their favourite books.
If you know the story from Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 film, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, or from a later film or stage version, the novel is still worth reading on its own terms.
Who will enjoy it
Readers who love atmospheric novels set on a great country estate. Book clubs that like a long novel with plenty to discuss. Anyone who enjoyed "Jane Eyre" and wants a companion read. And anyone who simply wants a long novel to settle into for a weekend.
Begin in Monte Carlo, and let the road to Manderley take you the rest of the way.
Sources
- Wikipedia, "Rebecca (novel)" (first published 5 August 1938 by Victor Gollancz in the UK; a first print run of 20,000 copies, more than double that sold within a month; 2.8 million copies sold between 1938 and 1965; continuously in print since 1938; Avon as its US paperback publisher in 1993; classed as Gothic and romance; du Maurier's description of it as a study in jealousy; her statement that it drew on memories of Menabilly and Cornwall and on her relationship with her father; parallels with Jane Eyre noted by commentators; the unnamed narrator in her early twenties working as companion to the wealthy American Mrs. Van Hopper, who is holidaying in Monte Carlo; Maxim de Winter as a wealthy 42-year-old widower whose wife Rebecca died a year earlier; marriage after a fortnight's courtship; Manderley as his estate in Cornwall; Mrs. Danvers as housekeeper and Rebecca's former lady's maid; National Book Award for favourite novel of 1938, voted by members of the American Booksellers Association; 14th in the BBC's 2003 Big Read UK survey; Alfred Hitchcock's 1940 film and its Academy Award for Best Picture) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca_(novel)
- Wikipedia, "Daphne du Maurier" (born 13 May 1907 in London; died 19 April 1989 at her home in Par, Cornwall, aged 81; father Sir Gerald du Maurier, actor-manager; grandfather George du Maurier, Punch cartoonist and author of Trilby; family summer home in Fowey, Cornwall; lease of Menabilly, near Fowey, from 1943, living there until 1969; The Loving Spirit, 1931; Jamaica Inn, 1936; My Cousin Rachel, 1951; "The Birds," 1952; "Don't Look Now," 1971; made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1969) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daphne_du_Maurier
- Wikipedia, "Gothic fiction" (a literary mode built on a climate of fear and unease, often set in castles and old buildings; Rebecca's success revived interest in Gothic romance; du Maurier's work inspired a large body of "female Gothics"; critics who see Jane Eyre's influence on Rebecca) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_fiction
- Wikipedia (Japanese), "レベッカ (小説)" (2020 film adaptation; stage musical adaptation) https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/レベッカ_(小説)
- Virago, "Rebecca" (Virago Modern Classics paperback, on sale 16 July 2015, ISBN 9780349006574; a hardcover edition, ISBN 9781844088799, also listed) https://www.virago.co.uk/titles/daphne-du-maurier/rebecca/9780349006574/