In the American Grain - Softcover

Williams, William Carlos

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0811202305 ISBN 13: 9780811202305

Publisher: New Directions, 1956

Synopsis

Although admired by D. H. Lawrence, this modern classic went generally unnoticed during the years after its publication in 1925. Yet it is "a fundamental book, essential if one proposes to come to terms with American literature" (London Times Literary Supplement).

William Carlos Williams was not a historian, but he was fascinated by the texture of American history. Beginning with Columbus's discovery of the Indies and moving on through Sir Walter Raleigh, Cotton Mather, Daniel Boone, George Washington, Ben Franklin, Aaron Burr, Edgar Allan Poe, and Abraham Lincoln, Williams found in the fabric of familiar episodes new shades of meaning and configurations of character. He brought a poetic imagination to the task of reconstructing a live tradition for Americans, and what results is one of the finest works of prose to have been penned by any writer of the twentieth century.

About this title

About the Author

Besides being a practicing physician, William Carlos Williams (1883–1963) was a poet, short-story writer, novelist, translator, playwright, and essayist whose contribution to the development of modern American poetry grew out of his commitment to recording the "local" experience of Rutherford, New Jersey, and its environs.

Rick Moody is the award-winning author of Black Veil, Demonology, The Diviners, Garden State, The Ice Storm, Purple America, and Right Livelihoods.

Review

His treatment is free and episodic, beginning with the Vikings and ending with Abraham Lincoln. (Daniel J. Boorstin, author of The Discoverers) "

It is ever more apparent that Williams is this century s major American poet. (The Chicago Tribune) "

About this edition

• Publisher: New Directions
• Publication date: 1956
• ISBN 10: 0811202305
• ISBN 13: 9780811202305
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 234