In his day, W. Somerset Maugham was most celebrated as a playwright, and the breadth of his ability is manifested in this collection of his most popular plays. Included here are the noirish mysteryThe Sacred Flame, the hilarious satiresThe Circle,The Constant Wife, andOur Betters, and the sharp-witted dramaSheppey. Whether suspenseful or acerbically witty, these plays take a sly look at the idiosyncrasies and hypocrisies of their time.

William Somerset Maugham, famous as novelist, playwright and short-story writer, was born in 1874, and lived in Paris until he was ten. He was educated at King's School, Canterbury, and at Heidelberg University. He spent some time at St. Thomas' Hospital with a view to practising medicine, but the success of his first novel,Liza of Lambeth, published in 1897, won him over to letters.Of Human Bondage, the first of his masterpieces, came out in 1915, and with the publication in 1919 ofThe Moon and Sixpencehis reputation as a novelist was established. His position as a successful playwright was being consolidated at the same time. His first play,A Man of Honour, was followed by a series of successes just before and after World War I, and his career in the theatre did not end until 1933 withSheppey.

His fame as a short story writer began withThe Trembling of a Leaf, subtitledLittle Stories of the South Sea Islands, in 1921, after which he published more than ten collections. His other works include travel books such asOn a Chinese Screen, andDon Fernando, essays, criticism, and the autobiographicalThe Summing UpandA Writer's Notebook.

In 1927, he settled in the south of France, and lived there until his death in 1965.