The Moon and Sixpence

He abandoned his wife. He abandoned his children. He abandoned civilization itself. And then he painted something beautiful.

W. Somerset Maugham's most enduring novel is a savage, brilliant portrait of an artist who burns every bridge to pursue a vision that only he can see—loosely based on the life of the painter Paul Gauguin.

Charles Strickland is a London stockbroker, middle-aged, dull, respectable. He has a wife, two children, a comfortable home, and a future of predictable contentment. Then he walks away. No warning. No explanation. He goes to Paris, lives in squalor, and begins to paint. He is not a good man. He is not a kind man. He is indifferent to the suffering of those who love him, indifferent to the women who throw themselves at him, indifferent to the friend who sacrifices his home, his wife, and eventually his life for Strickland's art. Strickland does not care. He cares only about the vision burning inside him, the thing he must get down on canvas before it consumes him entirely.

The novel follows Strickland from London to Paris to Marseilles to Tahiti, where he finally finds the freedom to paint as he must. He takes a native wife, has children, contracts leprosy, and goes blind. In his final months, with no one to watch, he paints a masterpiece on the walls of his hut—then orders it burned after his death.

This is Maugham at his most provocative and memorable: a novel about the cost of genius, the cruelty of the artistic impulse, and the people left behind when someone decides that beauty matters more than love. The title refers to an old saying: to pursue the moon is to aim for the highest, most transcendent goal; to care about sixpence is to worry about money, comfort, and the opinion of others. Strickland chooses the moon. Everyone else pays the price.

• First published in 1919, Maugham's most famous novel, inspired by the life of Paul Gauguin

• A provocative exploration of artistic genius, obsession, and the human cost of creativity

• Has never gone out of print and remains a touchstone for anyone who has ever wondered whether greatness is worth the price

Available in multiple formats:

• Paperback & Hardcover: Beautifully designed print editions presenting the complete, unabridged text made to last.

• Ebook: DRM-free EPUB compatible with Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, and all major e-readers.

• Audiobook: Professionally narrated, complete and unabridged, available on all major audiobook platforms.

A beautifully crafted edition for your shelf, your device, or your ears, or the perfect gift for anyone who knows that the moon is beautiful, but that the sixpence matters too.

About the Author

W. Somerset Maugham (1874–1965) was an English novelist, playwright, and short story writer, one of the most popular and highest-paid authors of his time. Born in Paris, he was orphaned as a boy and sent to live with an emotionally distant uncle—experiences that would shape his writing. He studied medicine at St. Thomas's Hospital in London, but the success of his first novel, Liza of Lambeth (1897), led him to turn to letters. His masterpieces include Of Human Bondage (1915), The Moon and Sixpence (1919), Cakes and Ale (1930), and The Razor's Edge (1944). During and after World War I, he worked as a spy for the British Secret Intelligence Service, an experience that inspired his novel Ashenden (1927), which later influenced Ian Fleming's James Bond series. Maugham died in France in 1965.