In The New Yorker Fiction Podcast, Deborah Treisman interviews Paul Theroux about V.S. Pritchett's short story, "The Necklace." Theroux shares his personal connection to Pritchett and discusses the story's themes of materialism, class, truthfulness, and disillusionment, comparing it to other "necklace stories" by authors like Maupassant and Henry James. He praises Pritchett's ability to write about working-class English life with humor and insight, highlighting the story's complex characters and subtle exploration of class distinctions. Theroux also reads the short story in its entirety.
