
James Wright
A Life in Poetry
Jonathan Blunk(Author)
Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc (Publisher)
Published on 12. March 2019
Book
Paperback/Softback
526 pages
978-0-374-53793-7 (ISBN)
Description
In the extraordinary generation of American poets who came of age in the middle of the twentieth century, James Wright (1927-1980) was frequently placed at the top of the list. With a fierce, single-minded devotion to his work, Wright escaped the steel town of his Depression-era childhood in the Ohio valley to become a revered professor of English literature and a Pulitzer Prize winner. But his hometown remained at the heart of his work, and he courted a rough, enduring muse from his vivid memories of the Midwest. A full-throated lyricism and classical poise became his tools, honesty and unwavering compassion his trademark.
Using meticulous research, hundreds of interviews, and Wright's public readings, Jonathan Blunk's authorized biography explores the poet's life and work with exceptional candor, making full use of Wright's extensive unpublished work-letters, poems, translations, and personal journals. Focusing on the tensions that forced Wright's poetic breakthroughs and the relationships that plunged him to emotional depths, Blunk provides a spirited portrait, and a fascinating depiction of this turbulent period in American letters.
A gifted translator and mesmerizing reader, Wright appears throughout in all his complex and eloquent urgency. Discerning yet expansive, James Wright will change the way the poet's work is understood and inspire a new appreciation for his enduring achievement.
Using meticulous research, hundreds of interviews, and Wright's public readings, Jonathan Blunk's authorized biography explores the poet's life and work with exceptional candor, making full use of Wright's extensive unpublished work-letters, poems, translations, and personal journals. Focusing on the tensions that forced Wright's poetic breakthroughs and the relationships that plunged him to emotional depths, Blunk provides a spirited portrait, and a fascinating depiction of this turbulent period in American letters.
A gifted translator and mesmerizing reader, Wright appears throughout in all his complex and eloquent urgency. Discerning yet expansive, James Wright will change the way the poet's work is understood and inspire a new appreciation for his enduring achievement.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Product notice
Paperback (UK-trade)
Illustrations
16 Pages of Black-and-White Illustrations, Frontispiece Photograph / Notes, Index
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 28 mm
Weight
756 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-374-53793-7 (9780374537937)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Jonathan Blunk is a poet, a critic, an essayist, and a radio producer. His work has appeared in The Nation, Poets & Writers, The Georgia Review, and elsewhere. He was a coeditor of A Wild Perfection, the selected letters of James Wright.