Gertrude Atherton 
Black Oxen 

First published in 1923 ‘Black Oxen’ is one of feminist author Gertrude Atherton’s most famous and most controversial novels. Set in New York during the 1920s, it tells the story of the budding romance between young playwright Lee Clavering and an American widow, Madame Mary Zatianny – an older woman who has regained the vitality and looks of her youth. A fascinating science-fiction romance, ‘Black Oxen’ is a story about high society, love, and morals, and also offers a tantalising glimpse of the heady age. It was later adapted into a silent movie of the same name, starring Corrine Griffith and Conway Tearle.-