Author

Publication

2019-04-16 - W. W. Norton & Company

Language

English

Word Count

140,000 words, Guess

Page Count

560 pages

Physical Format

Hardcover

Identifiers

and 1 more
  • Amazon0393244512

Classifications

  • LCCPS3501.L4625Z55 2019

Description

"This definitive biography reclaims Nelson Algren as a towering literary figure and exposes how his radical politics sabotaged his career. For a time, Nelson Algren (1909-1981) was America's most famous author. Millions bought his books; The Man with the Golden Arm, winner of the first National Book Award, was made into a film starring Frank Sinatra. Yet the cause of Algren's decline was never clear. Some said he drank his talent away, others cited writer's block. The truth, hidden in the pages of his books, is far more complicated and tragic. In this magisterial biography--drawing from interviews, archived correspondence, and the first unredacted version of Algren's FBI file--Colin Asher reestablishes Algren not only as a legendary figure, but a dramatic iconoclast. He recounts the author's development as a thinker, his affair with Simone de Beauvoir, and his unapologetic left-leaning politics. Most intriguingly, Asher uncovers the true cause of Algren's artistic exile: a reckless creative decision that led to increased FBI scrutiny and may have caused a mental breakdown"--

Subjects

Other Editions

  • Never a Lovely So Real: The Life and Work of Nelson AlgrenhardcoverW. W. Norton & Company2019-04-16

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