The Go-Between

Leslie Poles Hartley was born in 1895 in Cambridgeshire, England. His father, who had strong religious views, was the manager of a factory. There was enough money in the family for them to live in a large country house and to send the boy to Harrow (one of the most expensive boys' schools in the country) and later to Oxford University. During the First World War Hartley served in the army, but he left before the end of the war as a result of ill-health. He returned to Oxford, where he continued studying until 1922. He then turned seriously to writing and lived in Italy for much of the rest of his life. He died in 1972. Hartley became known as an important writer of short stories, which appeared in a number of collections. He also wrote full-length books, and his three stories about 'Eustace and Hilda' were very popular. These follow the relationship between Eustace and his older sister Hilda as they grow from children to adults in Oxford and Venice. In these books, Hartley shows a great understanding of the difficulties of growing up, a subject to which he returns in The Go-Between. He also gives a very clear picture of the society and customs of the time, particularly in his description of Oxford student life in the 1920s. (Adapted from the biography written for "The Go-Between" Penguin readers edition.