Theme Love Our story begins just outside Miss Pinkerton s Academy for Young Ladies at Chiswick Mall in London. A large family carriage is waiting for two young ladies Amelia Sedley and Becky Sharp. In this Reader you will find Focus on sections W. M. Thackeray The Book s Title The Serial Novel Waterloo Glossary of difficult words Comprehension and extension activities Tags Love Jealousy Family Vanity Fair was written 200 years ago but it is a thoroughly modern story that provides us with universal truths about what it means to be human in all its splendour and with all its imperfections. It is a story full of memorable characters who accompany you on a fascinating journey through the first part of the nineteenth century.