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From the author of Mrs Engels and The Sisters Mao, an intimate family memoir about filial love and its limits, separation, and loss.Gavin is spending the quarantine with his eighty-year-old mother, whose mind is slowly slipping away. He has returned home to care for her and to write a novel. But all he can write about is her. In this frank and revealing memoir, he unspools an intimate story of his upbringing and early adulthood: feeling out of place as a child, homophobic bullying at school, his brother's mental illness and drug addiction, his father's sudden death, his own devastating diagnosis, his struggles and triumphs as a writer, and above all, his relationship with his mother. Her brightness shines a light over his childhood, but her betrayal of his teenage self leads to years of resentment and disconnection. Now, he must find a way to reconcile with her, before it is too late.

Within the past decades, nostalgia has become a misleadingly familiar concept. Whereas popular nostalgia connotes an idealised memory of the past, nost/algia implies a novelty of approach by focusing on the distinction between 'nostos' (the return) and 'algos' (the pain). Discussed with a reference to the pastoral and the Odyssey, the present study examines certain 'complex' deployments of the mode as applied in several autobiographical narratives of two ex-patriate writers, Joseph Conrad and Henry James. The book first traces the history and theory of autobiography and nostalgia. Second, it interprets the nostalgic tensions as complex structures of thought which prompt certain inferences about the writers' respective attitudes towards the world and their inner selves.

Les Souvenirs d'égotisme sont une oeuvre autobiographique de Stendhal. Ils ont été rédigés en 1832, lors du séjour de leur auteur à Civitavecchia. Stendhal y raconte minutieusement sa vie à Paris après la chute de Napoléon, de 1821 à 1830. Le récit est resté inachevé et n'a été publié qu'en 1892 par Casimir Stryienski. Le titre signifie que Stendhal veut explorer sa propre personne et tenter de se connaître lui-même. L'égotisme n'est donc pas synonyme d'égoïsme - l'égoïsme en constitue plutôt un danger. Extrait : Je me logeais à Paris, rue de Richelieu, dans un Hôtel de Bruxelles, n 47, tenu par un M. Petit, ancien valet de chambre de l'un des MM. de Damas. La politesse, la grâce, l'à-propos de ce M. Petit, son absence de tout sentiment, son horreur pour tout mouvement de l'âme qui avait de la profondeur, son souvenir vif pour des jouissances de vanité qui avaient trente ans de date, son honneur parfait en matière d'argent, en faisaient à mes yeux le modèle parfait de l'ancien Français. Je lui confiai bien vite les 3000 francs qui me restaient ; il m'en remit malgré moi un bout de reçu que je me hâtai de perdre, ce qui le contraria beaucoup lorsque, quelques mois après ou quelques semaines, je repris mon argent pour aller en Angleterre où me poussa le mortel dégoût que j'éprouvais à Paris...

Nel 1922 Agatha Christie accompagnò il marito Archibald nel British Empire Exhibition Tour, un viaggio ufficiale dal Sud Africa all'Australia, fino a Nuova Zelanda, Hawaii e Canada, per promuovere la mostra dell'Impero Britannico che si sarebbe tenuta a Wembley tra il 1924 e il 1925. Salpata il 20 gennaio, la coppia attraccherà di nuovo a Southampton quasi un anno dopo, il 1° dicembre. Durante quei dieci mesi Agatha scrive ogni settimana alla madre e alla figlia Rosalind, raccontando dei mondi esotici che visita, delle persone che incontra, delle sue giornate e delle scoperte che le riempiono, di navi, treni e cammelli, di menu e inviti nelle ambasciate, di animali selvaggi, di usanze bizzarre. Ne emerge la figura di una giovane donna curiosa e sicura di sé, sempre pronta a nuove esperienze: fu tra le primissime donne, per esempio, a praticare il surf. Questo volume raccoglie le lettere, le centinaia di fotografie che la Christie stessa scattò, le cartoline e i ritagli di giornale che conservò tra i suoi ricordi. Curato e introdotto dal nipote Mathew Prichard, oltre a offrire uno spaccato della vita negli anni Venti Il giro del mondo mette in luce il lato più avventuroso della personalità di Dame Agatha, un aspetto che si sarebbe rivelato decisivo anche per la sua identità di scrittrice.

A definitive biography of a twentieth century gay author whose work has recently been rediscovered and enjoys a cult following.One of the most iconoclastic twentieth-century American novelists, James Purdy penned original and sometimes shocking works about those on the margins of American society, exploring small towns, urban life, failure, alienation, sexuality, and familial relations. In his own life, Purdy was a compelling if eccentric figure, declared an "authentic American genius" by Gore Vidal.James Purdy: Life of a Contrarian Writer is the first full-length biography of the gay American novelist, story writer, playwright, and poet. Michael Snyder has spent over a decade plumbing the mysteries of Purdy's career and personal life, including interviews with those who knew him. From his roots in northwestern Ohio, Purdy moved to the world of Bohemian artists and jazz musicians in Chicago in the late 1930s and 1940s, travelled in Spain, studied in Mexico, enlisted in the Army Air Corps, worked for the Federal Security Agency, and taught in Cuba and at a Wisconsin college for nearly a decade. All the while, he aspired to become a writer, but struggled to publish. Only when friends financed the private printing of his work did he find a champion in poet Dame Edith Sitwell, who helped get him published in England, which led to publication in the United States. After moving to New York in 1957, he spent nearly fifty years writing in Brooklyn Heights. Although Purdy's critical reputation peaked in the 1960s and he never enjoyed a bestseller, his often queer and edgy content found a diverse following that included Tennessee Williams, Langston Hughes, William Carlos Williams, Dorothy Parker, Edward Albee, Jonathan Franzen, John Waters, and many LGBTQ readers. Difficult and often contrarian, Purdy sometimes hampered his own career as he sought recognition from a conservative, cliquey New York publishing world. Conveying the potency and influence of Purdy's fierce artistic integrity, vision, and self-definition as a truth-teller, this groundbreaking literary biography recovers the life of a highly talented writer with a persistent cult following.

Joyce Porter is the funniest crime writer you've never heard of- until now. Creator of DCI Wilfrid Dover, Scotland Yard's laziest and rudest detective, Eddie Brown, a schoolteacher forced into Cold War spycraft against his will, and Constance Ethel Morrison-Burke ("The Hon Con"), a boisterous noblewoman turned private eye. Porter filled her mysteries with outrageous situations, sparkling dialogue, and over-the-top humor. This tribute to her works is for mystery lovers who enjoy laughing while they piece together clues.

Tutto comincia con "Delitto e castigo", un romanzo che Paolo Nori legge da ragazzo: è una iniziazione e, al contempo, un'avventura. La scoperta è a suo modo violenta: quel romanzo, pubblicato centododici anni prima, a tremila chilometri di distanza, apre una ferita che non smette di sanguinare. "Sanguino ancora. Perché?" si chiede Paolo Nori, e la sua è una risposta altrettanto sanguinosa, anzi è un romanzo che racconta di un uomo che non ha mai smesso di trovarsi tanto spaesato quanto spietatamente esposto al suo tempo. Se da una parte Nori ricostruisce gli eventi capitali della vita di Fëdor M. Dostoevskij, dall'altra lascia emergere ciò che di sé, quasi fraternamente, Dostoevskij gli lascia raccontare. Perché di questa prossimità è fatta la convivenza con lo scrittore che più di ogni altro ci chiede di bruciare la distanza fra la nostra e la sua esperienza di esistere. Ingegnere senza vocazione, genio precoce della letteratura, nuovo Gogol', aspirante rivoluzionario, condannato a morte, confinato in Siberia, cittadino perplesso della "città più astratta e premeditata del globo terracqueo", giocatore incapace e disperato, marito innamorato, padre incredulo ("Abbiate dei figli! Non c'è al mondo felicità più grande", è lui che lo scrive), goffo, calvo, un po' gobbo, vecchio fin da quando è giovane, uomo malato, confuso, contraddittorio, disperato, ridicolo, così simile a noi. Quanto ci chiama, sembra chiedere Paolo Nori, quanto ci chiama a sentire la sua disarmante prossimità, il suo essere ferocemente solo, la sua smagliante unicità? Quanto ci chiama a riconoscere dove la sua ferita continua a sanguinare?

Il conte Ilya Tolstoj, terzogenito del grande scrittore russo, racconta suo padre nella vita familiare come in quella tormentata di romanziere, perennemente insoddisfatto degli innumerevoli fogli imbrattati dalle sue continue riscritture. Una visione sorprendentemente franca della personalità di uno dei più grandi scrittori di tutti i tempi. Lo stile di vita decadente, l¿insaziabile voluttà per il cibo, il gioco d¿azzardo, le cavalcate in campagna, la caccia, l¿ambizione e lo sconfinato talento letterario, il complicato rapporto con Turgenev che portò alla rottura tra i due, le scarse manifestazioni di affetto verso i figli, la crisi spirituale, l¿analisi degli eventi che lo portarono a fuggire da casa dieci giorni prima di morire in una sperduta stazione ferroviaria a duecentocinquanta miglia a sud-est di Mosca: questo libro di memorie familiari, aspro e sincero, scritto dal terzo dei suoi figli, rivela Lev Tolstoj per quello che era nella vita privata e in quella di scrittore. Postfazione di Marta Ottaviani. Das Urheberrecht an bibliographischen und produktbeschreibenden Daten und an den bereitgestellten Bildern liegt bei Informazioni Editoriali, I.E. S.r.l., oder beim Herausgeber oder demjenigen, der die Genehmigung erteilt hat. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

RÉSUMÉ :"Souvenirs d'Égotisme : autobiographie et lettres inédites" est une oeuvre introspective de Stendhal, un écrivain français de renom. Ce livre offre une plongée fascinante dans l'univers personnel de l'auteur, révélant ses pensées les plus intimes et ses réflexions sur sa propre vie. Stendhal, de son vrai nom Henri Beyle, utilise cette autobiographie pour explorer ses souvenirs, ses ambitions et ses déceptions. À travers ses lettres inédites, le lecteur découvre une facette moins connue de l'écrivain, celle d'un homme en proie aux doutes et aux questionnements existentiels. L'ouvrage est une mosaïque de récits personnels, de réflexions philosophiques et d'anecdotes captivantes qui permettent de mieux comprendre l'homme derrière les romans célèbres tels que "Le Rouge et le Noir" et "La Chartreuse de Parme". Les souvenirs de Stendhal sont empreints d'une honnêteté désarmante, offrant une vision sans fard de sa vie et de ses relations. Ce texte est une invitation à voyager à travers le temps, à explorer les méandres de l'esprit d'un des grands écrivains du XIXe siècle, tout en s'interrogeant sur les thèmes universels de l'identité, de l'amour et de la quête de sens.L'AUTEUR :Henri Beyle, plus connu sous le pseudonyme de Stendhal, est né le 23 janvier 1783 à Grenoble, en France. Issu d'une famille bourgeoise, il perd sa mère à l'âge de sept ans, événement qui marque profondément sa jeunesse. Passionné par la littérature et l'art, il quitte Grenoble pour Paris en 1799, où il s'immerge dans le monde littéraire et artistique. Stendhal s'engage ensuite dans l'armée napoléonienne, ce qui lui permet de voyager à travers l'Europe, notamment en Italie, pays qui l'influence profondément et qu'il considère comme sa seconde patrie. Sa carrière littéraire débute véritablement dans les années 1820 avec des oeuvres comme "De l'Amour" et "Racine et Shakespeare", mais c'est avec "Le Rouge et le Noir" (1830) et "La Chartreuse de Parme" (1839) qu'il acquiert une renommée durable. Stendhal est reconnu pour son style incisif et psychologique, ainsi que pour sa capacité à dépeindre avec finesse les complexités humaines. Il meurt à Paris le 23 mars 1842, laissant derrière lui une oeuvre riche et diverse qui continue d'influencer la littérature moderne.

Eleanor Cameron (1912-1996) was an innovative and genre-defying author of children's fiction and children's literature criticism. From her beginnings as a librarian, Cameron went on to become a prominent and respected voice in children's literature, writing one of the most beloved children's science fiction novels of all time, The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet, and later winning the National Book Award for her time fantasy The Court of the Stone Children.In addition, Eleanor Cameron played an often vocal role in critical debates about children's literature. She was one of the first authors to take up literary criticism of children's novels and published two influential books of criticism, including The Green and Burning Tree. One of Cameron's most notable acts of criticism came in 1973, when she wrote a scathing critique of Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Dahl responded in kind, and the result was a fiery imbroglio within the pages of the Horn Book Magazine. Yet despite her many accomplishments, most of Cameron's books went out of print by the end of her life, and her star faded.This biography aims to reinsert Cameron into the conversation by taking an in-depth look at her tumultuous early life in Ohio and California, her unforgettably forceful personality and criticism, and her graceful, heartfelt novels. The biography includes detailed analysis of the creative process behind each of her published works and how Cameron's feminism, environmentalism, and strong sense of ethics are reflected in and represented by her writings. Drawn from over twenty interviews, thousands of letters, and several unpublished manuscripts in her personal papers, Eleanor Cameron is a tour of the most exciting and creative periods of American children's literature through the experience of one of its valiant purveyors and champions.

A concise introduction to the life, work, and ideas of Nobel laureate Octavio Paz.An Introduction to Octavio Paz, written by Alberto Ruy Sánchez, offers a comprehensive overview of the vast literary, intellectual, and poetic legacy of Mexico's greatest writer. This primer unravels Paz's complex life and bibliography, guiding readers through his key themes and concepts.Explore Paz's revelatory conception of poetry, his relationship with history, and his exploration of Mexican identity. Discover the influences of surrealism, erotism, and Eastern thought on his work. This handbook is indispensable for anyone seeking to understand Paz's lasting impact on literature and culture.

My Dear Boy brings a largely unexplored dimension of Langston Hughes to light. Carmaletta Williams and John Edgar Tidwell explain that scholars have neglected the vital role that correspondence between Carrie Hughes and her son Langston--Harlem Renaissance icon, renowned poet, playwright, fiction writer, autobiographer, and essayist--played in his work.The more than 120 heretofore unexamined letters presented here are a veritable treasure trove of insights into the relationship between mother Carrie and her renowned son Langston. Until now, a scholarly consensus had begun to emerge, accepting the idea of their lives and his art as simple and transparent. But as Williams and Tidwell argue, this correspondence is precisely where scholars should start in order to understand the underlying complexity in Carrie and Langston's relationship. By employing Family Systems Theory for the first time in Hughes scholarship, they demonstrate that it is an essential heuristic for analyzing the Hughes family and its influence on his work. The study takes the critical truism about Langston's reticence to reveal his inner self and shows how his responses to Carrie were usually not in return letters but, instead, in his created art. Thus My Dear Boy reveals the difficult negotiations between family and art that Langston engaged in as he attempted to sustain an elusive but enduring artistic reputation.

'I was wowed and moved' Tracy Chevalier <BR><BR>Anne Brontë is the forgotten Brontë sister, overshadowed by her older siblings - virtuous, successful Charlotte, free-spirited Emily and dissolute Branwell. Tragic, virginal, sweet, stoic, selfless, Anne. The less talented Brontë, the other Brontë. <BR><BR>Take Courage is Samantha's personal, poignant and surprising journey into the life and work of a woman sidelined by history. A brave, strongly feminist writer well ahead of her time - and her more celebrated siblings - and who has much to teach us today about how to find our way in the world.

Reading George Eliot's work was described by one Victorian critic as 'the feeling of entering the confessional in which she sees and hears all the secrets of human psychology--that roar which lies on the other side of silence'. This new biography of George Eliot goes beyond the much-told story of her life. It gives an account of what it means to become a novelist, and to think like a novelist: in particular a realist novelist for whom art exists not for art's sake but in the exploration and service of human life. It shows the formation and the workings of George Eliot's mind as it plays into her creation of some of the greatest novels of the Victorian era.When at the age of 37 Marian Evans became George Eliot, it followed long mental preparation and personal suffering. During this time she related her power of intelligence to her capacity for feeling: discovering that her thinking and her art had to combine both. That was the great ambition of her novels--not to be mere pastimes or fictions but experiments in life and helps in living, through the deepest account of human complexity available. Philip Davis's illuminating new biography will enable you both to see through George Eliot's eyes and to feel what it is like to be seen by her, in the imaginative involvement of her readers with her characters.

HarperCollins is proud to present our range of timeless literary classics.'Love is the only thing that we can carry with us when we go, and it makes the end so easy.'In mid-nineteenth-century Massachusetts, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March continue to encounter both joys and sorrows along life's path, as they journey into womanhood both close to home and further away. The highs and lows of the four young women's lives are shared with each other, and supported by the bond of their sisterhood.This second part of 'Little Women' - sometimes published in a single volume - contains all the warmth and charm for which Louisa May Alcott's writing is universally admired.