A “mesmerizing” biography of the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Sophie’s Choice, The Confessions of Nat Turner, and Darkness Visible (Entertainment Weekly). William Styron was one of the most highly regarded and controversial authors of his generation. In this illuminating biography, James L. W. West III draws upon letters, papers, and manuscripts as well as interviews with Styron’s friends and family to recount in rich detail the experiences that shaped each of his groundbreaking books. From Styron’s Southern upbringing, which deeply influenced the Pulitzer Prize–winning The Confessions of Nat Turner and National Book Award–winning Sophie’s Choice, to his feud with Norman Mailer and the clinical depression that led to his acclaimed memoir Darkness Visible, West’s remarkable biography provides invaluable insight into the life and works of a giant of American literature.
Handpicked by his estate, a collection of the literary master's correspondence spans sixty years and documents major historical and cultural events as well as his receipt of the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and other accolades.
That year, we all traveled down to Newport News for the dedication of Port Warwick, a planned community named after the fictional town in Lie Down in Darkness. My brother's second child was born. Another summer passed quietly enough.
Oh, I'm so miser'blel Ijest wants to die. But I'm skeered of dyin'. Kin all men have pride? Kin all men be redeemed?” “Yes,” I said, “all men can have pride. And all men can be redeemed—by baptism in the Spirit.
... when asked one day by his elders why and how and whither all his nickels and his quarters and his dimes had so swiftly vanished, burst out the confession that they had gone, each one, not for candy or toys or Eskimo pies, ...
William Styron was born on June 11, 1925, in Newport News, Virginia, to W.C. and Pauline Styron. He was one of the preeminent American authors of his generation. His works, which include the bestseller Sophie's Choice (1979) and the ...
The American novelist discusses literature, his writings, and the role of history in fiction
Darkness Visible tells the story of Styron’s recovery, laying bare the harrowing realities of clinical depression and chronicling his triumph over the disease that had claimed so many great writers before him.
From 1947 to 1949, William Styron twice attempted to write a novel under the working title Inheritance of Night. On the third attempt he produced the award-winning Lie Down in...
And in A Tidewater Morning, Paul is thirteen and struggling to deal with his mother’s impending death from cancer.
This Quiet Dust offers a window into the philosophical underpinnings of Styron’s greatest novels and is the ideal entry for readers seeking a greater understanding into the work of one of America’s most celebrated authors.