I Am Elijah Thrush
Published on 4. October 2022
Book
Paperback/Softback
126 pages
978-1-5315-0119-8 (ISBN)
Description
On its surface, I Am Elijah Thrush is the story of Millicent De Frayne and her sensational half century campaign to win the love of Elijah Thrush. Elijah, after ruining the lives of countless men and women, is finally in love "incorrectly, if not indecently," with his great-grandson, Bird of Heaven. To support an unusual habit, a young Black man, Albert Peggs, reluctantly agrees to tell their remarkable story. It is in this telling the ambitions, desires, and true natures of Elijah, Millicent, and Albert come to light. With a delicately controlled balance of whimsy and pathos, James Purdy gives us this comedy of the heroic, the tragic, and the truly bizarre.
Met with critical bewilderment upon its initial publication fifty years ago, this new edition offers a foreword by Robert J. Corber illuminating Purdy's "complicated allegory" of objectification, desire, and race in the immediate post-Civil Rights moment.
Met with critical bewilderment upon its initial publication fifty years ago, this new edition offers a foreword by Robert J. Corber illuminating Purdy's "complicated allegory" of objectification, desire, and race in the immediate post-Civil Rights moment.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 8 mm
Weight
181 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5315-0119-8 (9781531501198)
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
Persons
James Purdy (Author)
James Purdy (1914-2009) was an American novelist, short-story writer, poet, and playwright who published over a dozen novels, including Malcolm and Eustace Chisholm and the Works, as well as many collections of poetry, short stories, and plays. His work has been translated into many languages. In 2013, his short stories were collected in The Complete Short Stories of James Purdy.
Robert J. Corber (Foreword By)
Robert J. Corber is the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor in American Institutions and Values at Trinity College. He is the author and editor of several books including, most recently, Cold War Femme: Lesbianism, National Identity, and Hollywood Cinema.
James Purdy (1914-2009) was an American novelist, short-story writer, poet, and playwright who published over a dozen novels, including Malcolm and Eustace Chisholm and the Works, as well as many collections of poetry, short stories, and plays. His work has been translated into many languages. In 2013, his short stories were collected in The Complete Short Stories of James Purdy.
Robert J. Corber (Foreword By)
Robert J. Corber is the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor in American Institutions and Values at Trinity College. He is the author and editor of several books including, most recently, Cold War Femme: Lesbianism, National Identity, and Hollywood Cinema.