“The most successful men are those who never admit the validity of other people's opinions, who even deny their existence.”

Poets, philosophers and art aficionados gather in the Italian villa of Mrs. Aldwinkle to reminisce about the Renaissance. A self-professed patron of the arts, the wealthy widow surrounds herself with an entourage of seemingly sophisticated acquaintances. The flaws, foibles and failures of each houseguest is on full display, as their thoughts and actions expose them to be little more than shallow snobs.

Best known for his dystopian masterpiece Brave New World, Aldous Huxley would go on to be nominated nine times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Set against the stunning backdrop of the Italian countryside, Those Barren Leaves is a scathing social satire exposing the superficial pretensions of 1920s cultural elites.

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