Eyeless in Gaza

This book by Aldous Huxley came up once on Tim Ferriss in the episodes we index. That mention was a genuine on-air recommendation, not just a passing reference. The people who brought it up: Andrew Roberts. Every occurrence below links to the episode page and to the exact second it was said on YouTube.

The novel focuses on the life of socialite Anthony Beavis, but it does so by employing a non-chronological structure. It juxtaposes four periods of Beavis' life, from the time that he is a young boy in the 1890s up until 1936. The novel describes Beavis as he goes through school, college and various romantic affairs, while probing the meaningfulness of upper class life during the same period. The novel depicts Beavis' own gradual disillusionment with high society, brought to a head by the suicide of his friend.