---
product_id: 32246696
title: "Martha Quest: A Coming-of-Age Classic in Colonial Africa – First Children of Violence Novel"
price: "€ 20.52"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 13
url: https://www.desertcart.ie/products/32246696-martha-quest-a-coming-of-age-classic-in-colonial-africa
store_origin: IE
region: Ireland
---

# Martha Quest: A Coming-of-Age Classic in Colonial Africa – First Children of Violence Novel

**Price:** € 20.52
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- **What is this?** Martha Quest: A Coming-of-Age Classic in Colonial Africa – First Children of Violence Novel
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## Description

Martha Quest: A Coming-of-Age Classic in Colonial Africa – First Children of Violence Novel [Doris Lessing] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Martha Quest: A Coming-of-Age Classic in Colonial Africa – First Children of Violence Novel

Review: Doris Lessing not only show great courage to write about issues that subsequently made her ... - Doris Lessing not only show great courage to write about issues that subsequently made her an outcast in her country, but she showed amazing skill at giving different perspectives to serious issues in a very fluid and believable manner. Excellent read!
Review: Martha Quest by Doris Lessing - Martha Quest is the first novel in Doris Lessing's massive Children of Violence series, which cumulatively consists of five books and 2,100+ pages. Because of the breadth of the series as a whole, the first book here acts as a general introduction, and can be frustrating to read simply because it isn't a complete story in and of itself. We get to know Ms Quest, where she comes from and what she wants out of life, but little more. The heavily autobiographical protagonist leaves her childhood farm, moves into a busier city, lolls away at a job, goes to nighttime party after party, dates a few different men, gets caught up what an assorted group of friends, becomes more perceptive at the different social classes around her, and marries a somewhat mysterious man at the end. This is all in pretty general brushstrokes, and a reader may not find much interesting here, and Quest not a particularly appealing character. Trust me, stick with it and you will find Ms Quest to be as interesting and fully-formed as anyone you have ever met. This is a lukewarm gateway to an incredibly impressive series of novels.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| ASIN  | 006095969X |
| Best Sellers Rank | #355,105 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #2,808 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction #14,655 in Literary Fiction (Books) |
| Book 1 of 5  | Children of Violence |
| Customer Reviews | 4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars (132) |
| Dimensions  | 5.31 x 0.76 x 8 inches |
| ISBN-10  | 9780060959692 |
| ISBN-13  | 978-0060959692 |
| Item Weight  | 2.31 pounds |
| Language  | English |
| Print length  | 336 pages |
| Publication date  | January 23, 2001 |
| Publisher  | Harper Perennial Modern Classics |

## Images

![Martha Quest: A Coming-of-Age Classic in Colonial Africa – First Children of Violence Novel - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61KGkGYXAkL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Doris Lessing not only show great courage to write about issues that subsequently made her ...
*by J***W on October 31, 2014*

Doris Lessing not only show great courage to write about issues that subsequently made her an outcast in her country, but she showed amazing skill at giving different perspectives to serious issues in a very fluid and believable manner. Excellent read!

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Martha Quest by Doris Lessing
*by S***9 on May 28, 2009*

Martha Quest is the first novel in Doris Lessing's massive Children of Violence series, which cumulatively consists of five books and 2,100+ pages. Because of the breadth of the series as a whole, the first book here acts as a general introduction, and can be frustrating to read simply because it isn't a complete story in and of itself. We get to know Ms Quest, where she comes from and what she wants out of life, but little more. The heavily autobiographical protagonist leaves her childhood farm, moves into a busier city, lolls away at a job, goes to nighttime party after party, dates a few different men, gets caught up what an assorted group of friends, becomes more perceptive at the different social classes around her, and marries a somewhat mysterious man at the end. This is all in pretty general brushstrokes, and a reader may not find much interesting here, and Quest not a particularly appealing character. Trust me, stick with it and you will find Ms Quest to be as interesting and fully-formed as anyone you have ever met. This is a lukewarm gateway to an incredibly impressive series of novels.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Lessing's Lessons Resonate
*by S***E on December 27, 2018*

I've lately been re-reading all of Lessing's works, and am enjoying the experience enormously. I first began reading her about 15 years ago, and I find that the older I get, the more prescient she seems (although that has little to do with this particular work), and I'm struck by her ruthless willingness to confront the highly uncomfortable facts of her own life, and her ability to create such fully formed characters that the reader attains such a level of intimacy with them that they seem wondrously alive, and events of 80 years ago seem immediate. As a voracious reader, I seldom revisit authors once I have exhausted their oeuvre, but Lessing draws me back. If you've never read her, Martha Quest is a good place to start, and I challenge any reader to come away from Lessing unchanged.

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*Store origin: IE*
*Last updated: 2026-03-17*