Xingu cover art

Xingu

 Preview
Subscribe now Free with 30-day trial
Offer ends on 14 April, 2026 at 23:59.
Prime logo
Pay ₹5/month for 2 months and ₹199/month after 2 months, Cancel anytime. Offer ends on 14 April 2026 at 23:59. Take this offer!
1 credit a month to use on any title to download and keep.
Listen to anything from the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts and audiobooks.
Download titles to your library and listen offline.
1 credit a month to use on any title to download and keep
Listen to anything from the Plus Catalogue—thousands of Audible Originals, podcasts and audiobooks
Download titles to your library and listen offline
₹199 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

Xingu

Written by: Edith Wharton
Narrated by: Anne Hancock
Subscribe now Free with 30-day trial

Pay ₹5/month for 2 months and ₹199/month after 2 months, Cancel anytime. Offer ends on 14 April 2026 at 23:59.

₹199 per month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for ₹286.00

Buy Now for ₹286.00

LIMITED TIME OFFER | Get 2 Months for ₹5/month

About this listen

In this gem of a short story, Edith Wharton's talent for satire shines.

Mrs. Ballinger and the ladies of the Lunch Club, that exclusive group dedicated to literature and erudition, are eagerly anticipating a visit by the noted novelist Osric Dane. Her books have been read by all the members except their newest, Mrs. Roby, whose idea of a perfect novel is one that entertains and preferably ends with marriage for the hero and heroine. It's painfully clear to Mrs. Ballinger and the others that Mrs. Roby is not on their intellectual plane.

The excitement of Osric Dane's arrival is soon quelled by that lady's bored, disdainful manner. She refuses to be drawn into a discussion of her books and "the sense of discouragement produced by her entrance, visibly increased the Lunch Club's eagerness to please her". Each member endeavors to impress their guest with the club's studies of art, sociology, ethics, and psychology.

When queried by the great lady as to which branch of psychology, no one is quite able to recall, and they lamely suppose this is because they have been so absorbed in....

A dreadful silence.

"In Xingu?" Mrs. Roby gently prompts.

Public Domain (P)2021 Anne Hancock Anthologies & Short Stories Classics Short Stories
All stars
Most relevant
The little social world of the Lunch Club looked down upon Mrs.Roby when she said that she hadn't read Osric Dane. Her friends praised the novelist effusively.
These ladies urged the authoress Osric Dane to drop in for a quiet talk as a guest of honour. When they were introduced to the author, they looked at her with an interest and a curiosity which they could hardly conceal.
Yet, nothing they could do for Miss Dane was too much. She was not interested in their opinion of her books. They couldn't get any enthusiasm out of her. It really was very tiresome.
Determined to be cool and civil, Mrs.Roby gave a neat turn to the discussion and saved their faces. Now, the other members got jealous of her influence over Osric Dane.

The little social world of the Lunch Club

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.