The Group (1963), is American author Mary McCarthy’s best-known work, though not the one she would have chosen to crown her body of work. Known for the sharp wit and intellectual daring that marked her fiction and nonfiction, McCarthy may not have predicted that this juicy, gossipy novel, with elements of autobiography, would become such a large part of her legacy. 

The Group hit the New York Times Bestseller list several weeks after its publication and stayed there for nearly two years. Considered scandalous for its time, it touched on issues of contraception, abortion, mental illness, male chauvinism, and lesbian relationships, as experienced by eight young women from the Vassar College class of 1933.

The book was banned in several countries, but that didn’t deter it from being a huge international hit. The film version of The Group premiered in 1966, featuring a stellar cast (including a breakthrough role for Candice Bergen) and direction by Sidney Lumet. Read More→