The last couple of times I've been to New York I have been fortunate enough to stay on Washington Square itself, but I was actually prompted to get hold of this classic after learning that the amazing Fanny Kemble had inspired James to write it. It is a short, vivid, sad story of a father and daughter who fail to communicate emotionally, and an aunt who communicates far too well with her niece's unworthy lover, set in the much smaller New York of the 1840s (published in 1880). There's lots of beautiful character observation (at least of the central four personalities; the others are a bit marginal) and a vivid sense of time and place. Strongly recommended.