{"product_id":"chasing-bright-medusas-a-life-of-willa-cather-hardcover","title":"Chasing Bright Medusas: A Life of Willa Cather - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eBenjamin Taylor\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eChasing Bright Medusas\u003c\/i\u003e should appeal to anyone -- novice or expert -- ready to explore Cather's life and work in the company of a critic so alert to the shimmering subtlety of her style and the hard years of effort that went into crystallizing it.\" \u003ci\u003e--The Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA tender biography of one of the greatest authors of the twentieth century and an elegant exploration of artistic endurance, as told by a lifelong lover of Willa Cather's work \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe story of Willa Cather is defined by a lifetime of determination, struggle, and gradual emergence. Some show their full powers early, yet Cather was the opposite--she took her time and transformed herself by stages. The writer who leapt to the forefront of American letters with \u003ci\u003eO Pioneers!\u003c\/i\u003e (1913), \u003ci\u003eThe Song of the Lark\u003c\/i\u003e (1915), and \u003ci\u003eMy ﾁntonia\u003c\/i\u003e (1918) was already well into middle age. Through years of provincial journalism in Nebraska, brief spells of teaching, and editorial work on magazines, she persevered in pursuit of the ultimate goal--literary immortality. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eUnlike Hemingway, Faulkner, and Fitzgerald, her idealism was unironic, and she stood alone among the great modern authors--at odds with the fashionable attitudes of her time. Combining intricate analysis with an empathetic, lyrical voice, Benjamin Taylor uncovers the reality of Cather's artistic development, from modest beginnings to the triumphs of her mature years. His book is simultaneously an homage to her character, a warm consideration of her work, and a case being made to read Cather with renewed vigor.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBenjamin Taylor \u003c\/b\u003ereceived a 2021 Literature Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His memoir \u003ci\u003eHere We Are: My Friendship with Philip Roth\u003c\/i\u003e was published by Penguin Books in 2020. His previous memoir, \u003ci\u003eThe Hue and Cry at Our House: A Year Remembered\u003c\/i\u003e, received the 2017 Los Angeles Times-Christopher Isherwood Prize and was named a \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e Editors' Choice. His \u003ci\u003eProust: The Search\u003c\/i\u003e was named a Best Book of 2015 by Thomas Mallon in \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e and Robert McCrum in \u003ci\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/i\u003e. Taylor is a past fellow and current trustee of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and serves as president of the Edward F. Albee Foundation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 192\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1 x 8.3 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e November 14, 2023\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51752375451936,"sku":"9780593298824","price":29.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/2ae502dd02a5b5bb3b874368406101e5.webp?v=1779994180","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/chasing-bright-medusas-a-life-of-willa-cather-hardcover","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}