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Synopsis
Acclaimed historian Jenny Uglow brings us a fascinating and beautifully illustrated biography of Edward Lear, shortlisted for Waterstone’s Book of the Year, and a Telegraph and Spectator Book of the Year. A scrupulously forensic literary appreciation of Edward Lear and his 'nonsenses' by one of our most cherished historians – without losing any sense of fun. Edward Lear’s poems follow and break the rules. They abide by the logic of syntax, the linking of rhyme and the dance of rhythm, and these "nonsenses" are full of joy – yet set against darkness. Where do these human-like animals and birds and these odd adventures – some gentle, some violent, some musical, some wild – come from? His many drawings that accompany his verse are almost hyper-real, as if he wants to free the creatures from the page. They exist nowhere else in literature, springing only from Lear’s imagination.
Lear lived all his life on the borders of rules and structures, of disciplines and desires. He vowed to ignore politics yet trembled with passionate sympathies. He depended on patrons and moved in establishment circles, yet he never belonged among them and mocked imperial attitudes. He loved men yet dreamed of marriage – but remained, it seems, celibate, wrapped in himself. Even in his family he was marginal, at once accepted and rejected. Surrounded by friends, he was alone.
If we follow him across land and sea – to Italy, Greece and Albania, to The Levant and Egypt and India – and to the borderlands of spirit and self, art and desire, can we see, in the end, if the nonsense makes sense? This is what Jenny Uglow has set sail to find out.
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About the Author
Jenny Uglow 's books include prize-winning biographies of Elizabeth Gaskell, William Hogarth and Sarah Losh. The Lunar Men , published in 2002, was described by Richard Holmes as 'an extraordinarily gripping account', while Nature's Engraver: A Life of Thomas Bewick , won the National Arts Writers Award and A Gambling Man: Charles II and the Restoration was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize. Her most recent book is In These Times: Living in Britain through Napoleon’s Wars, 1793–1815 . She lives in Canterbury.
Review
"A splendid portrait of this remarkable man." ―SundayTimes
"A wonderfully sharp and sympathetic biography."―Mail on Sunday
"Jenny Uglow has written a great life about an artist with half a life, a biography that might break your heart."― Robert McCrum, Observer
"Quite wonderful."― Guardian
"Jenny Uglow, Edward Lear’s most sensitive biographer to date, does him proud."― A. N.Wilson, Literary Review
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- PublisherFaber & Faber
- Publication date2019
- ISBN 10 0571269559
- ISBN 13 9780571269556
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages608
- Rating
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Mr Lear: A Life of Art and Nonsense
Published by
Faber & Faber, United Kingdom, London, 2019
ISBN 10: 0571269559
ISBN 13: 9780571269556
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Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
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Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A Daily Telegraph, Times, Evening Standard, TLS and Spectator Book of the Year. Winner of the Hawthornden Prize. Edward Lear is well-loved for his 'nonsenses', from joyous limericks to great love songs, and for his wonderful natural history paintings, landscapes and travel writing. But although Lear belongs to the age of Darwin and Dickens, his genius for the absurd and his dazzling word-play make him a very modern spirit. He was also a man of great simplicity and charm - children loved him - yet his humour masked epilepsy, depression and loneliness. Jenny Uglow's beautifully illustrated biography brings us his swooping moods, passionate friendships and restless travels. Above all it shows how this uniquely gifted man lived all his life on the boundaries of disciplines and desires - an exile of the heart. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR010661268
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Mr Lear : A Life of Art and Nonsense
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