Truth and lies in literature: Essays and reviews - Hardcover

Vizinczey, Stephen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0241118050 ISBN 13: 9780241118054

Publisher: H. Hamilton, 1986

Synopsis

"Gathered here is a selection of the essays [of] the distinguished Hungarian born novelist Stephen Vizinczey. . . . Taken together they have a weight and amplitude of a very high order. . . . What is most impressive about these essays (apart from their range and erudition) is the way that literature and life are so subtly intertwined with each other. The passion for the one is the passion for the other. As it ought to be in criticism, but seldom is."—Mark Le Fanu, The Times (London)"If a critic's job is to puncture pomposity, deflate over-hyped reputations and ferret out true value, then Vizinczey is master of the art."— Publishers Weekly"Stephen Vizinczey comes on like a pistol-packing stranger here to root out corruption and remind us of our ideals. He carries the role off with inspired gusto. His boldness and pugnacity are bracing and can be very funny."—Ray Sawhill, Newsweek"Every piece in the book is good, and many are so good that, after dipping into the middle, I stayed up half of the night, reading with growing amazement and admiration."—Bruce Bebb, Los Angeles Reader

About this title

Review

Every piece in the book is good, and many are so good that, after dipping into the middle, I stayed up half the night, reading with growing amazement and admiration. -- Bruce Bebb, Los Angeles Reader

Gathered here is a selection of the essays [of] the distinguished Hungarian born novelist Stephen Vizinczey....Taken together they have a weight and amplitude of a very high order....What is most impressive about these essays (apart from their range and erudition) is the way that literature and life are so subtly intertwined with each other. The passion for the one is the passion for the other. As it ought to be in criticism, but seldom is. -- Mark Le Fanu, The Times, London

Stephen Vizinczey comes on like a pistol-packing stranger here to root out corruption and remind us of our ideals. He carries the role off with inspired gusto. His boldness and pugnacity are bracing and can be very funny. -- Ray Sawhill, Newsweek

From Library Journal

There seems to have been little point in collecting these pieces, most of which were published in England in the 1970s. Vizinczey is a Hungarian writer transplanted to Canada and then to England after the 1956 revolution. He has read a great many classic works of literature, but one can share his enthusiasm for a Kleist or a Stendhal without finding anything new or discerning in what he says about them. His English is fluent, serviceable though somewhat strident; his tone markedly moralistic though he reveals no significantly elaborated ethical philosophy. He does write movingly about the betrayal of his country, but the relatively few pages on Eastern bloc culture hardly justify rescuing most of these items from the newspaper files. Alexander Gelley, Univ. of California, Irvine
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: H. Hamilton
• Publication date: 1986
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0241118050
• ISBN 13: 9780241118054
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 339