Book excerpt: "...she rather enjoyed being asked to do a thing and refusing, and she would have liked another opportunity of doing so." -W. Somerset Maugham, Liza of Lambeth (1897) Liza of Lambeth (1897) by W. Somerset Maugham was written when the author was a medical student and is based on his observations of the poor. The book was so popular that Maugham left his career in medicine to focus on writing which he believed to be his true calling. The plot centers on working class Liza and the drama that is her life in London, from titillating affairs to domestic violence. This novel is chillingly tragic and will engage readers who like page-turning plots and intriguing characters.