The Great Romance

At once a portrait of a singular man and the story of a unique place, The Great Romance recounts the extraordinary life of Lee Elman, a lawyer turned real estate investor, longtime patron of the arts, public servant, bon vivant, expert horseman, accomplished mountain climber, polyglot, devoted father, and lover of all things—and people—beautiful. Set at Aston Magna, Elman’s historic estate in the Berkshires of Great Barrington, Massachusetts, The Great Romance articulates a philosophy of life that is rooted in an existential resolve to create meaning and a humanistic ardor to make every moment matter. Here, as well, we follow the story of a friendship that leads, finally, to the transformation of what for the author had been a lingering sadness. And we meet many of the men and women with whom Elman has worked, played, and together embraced the motto sculpted on the ancient sacrificial altar that stands by Aston Magna’s outdoor pool: “Sol redit, tempus nunquam”— “the sun returns,
time never.”