The book Janet (Clara Bow) reads is the flapper novel "Flaming Youth" by Samuel Hopkins Adams. Adams used the pseudonym Warner Fabian when writing the book, fearing that the controversy over its frank depiction of female sexuality would ruin his reputation as an author. It was made into the 1923 film of the same name starring Colleen Moore.
The version of this film presently marketed on DVD consists of the first 5 reels, with the last 3 reels missing. From the American Film Institute Catalog of Feature Films, we get a brief synopsis of the missing footage which follows: "Lee Clavering (Conway Tearle) plans to marry the Countess Zatianny (Corinne Griffith), but a former admirer of hers intervenes, points out her folly, and escorts her back to Austria. Lee finds romance with flapper Janet Oglethorpe (Clara Bow)."
Black Oxen (1923), Flaming Youth (1923), and The Sheik (1921) are often listed by contemporary writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald as the three cinematic works which defined the cultural zeitgeist of the Jazz Age. A century later, only "The Sheik" (1921) has survived in its entirety.
The film is based on Gertrude Atherton's semi-autobiographical novel which, barring the science-fiction elements, heavily incorporated elements of her relationship with journalist Ambrose Bierce, upon whom the character of Lee Clavering was based.