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M O N D A Y

When Edith Wharton died, she left The Buccaneers—a Daisy Miller-ish tale of alliances between nouveau riche American girls and British aristocrats—unfinished. An incomplete draft of the novel was published posthumously in 1938, with the author’s synopsis appended in lieu of an ending. Marion Mainwaring came across the long out-of-print work while researching her biography of longtime Wharton consort Morton Fullerton. A novelist as well, Mainwaring took it upon herself to polish and complete Wharton’s book. Her cheeky endeavor was right on time: Her Buccaneers coincides with the release this year of big-screen adaptations of both Ethan Frome and The Age of Innocence. Now if only someone would finish Edwin Drood. Ask what proportion of The Buccaneers is Wharton and what Mainwaring at 7 p.m. at Chapters, 1512 K St. NW. FREE. (202) 347-5495. (Nicole Arthur)