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Physical description; xii, 996 p. : ill. ; 22 cm. Notes; Originally published: London : Jonathan Cape, 2006. Includes bibliographical references (p. [943]-959) and index. Originally published: London: Jonathan Cape, 2006. Summary; In this authorised biography, Zachary Leader argues that Kingsley Amis was not only the finest comic novelist of his generation, but a dominant figure in post-war British writing, as novelist, poet, critic and polemicist. Drawing not only on interviews with a range of Amis's friends, relatives, fellow writers, students and colleagues, many of them never before consulted, but also on hundreds of previously unpublished letters, Leader's biography will for the first time give a full picture of Amis's childhood, school days, life as a teacher, critic, political and cultural commentator, professional author, husband, father and lover. He explores Amis's fears and phobias, and the role that drink played in his life. And of course he pays due attention to Amis's work. As the editor of The Letters of Kingsley Amis, hailed in The Sunday Telegraph as 'one of the last major monuments to the epistolary art', Leader is more than qualified to be his authorised biographer. His book will surprise, entertain and illuminate. Subjects; Amis, Kingsley - Studies. Novelists, English - 20th century - Biography. Critics - Great Britain - Biography. Biography & autobiography: literary ; Novels, other prose & writers. Literary studies: from (c 1900 -). English. Autobiography & Autobiography / General. Literary Criticism / General. Genres; Bibliography. Illustrated.
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In this authorised biography, Zachary Leader argues that Kingsley Amis was not only the finest comic novelist of his generation, but a dominant figure in post-war British writing, as novelist, poet, critic and polemicist.
Drawing not only on interviews with a range of Amis's friends, relatives, fellow writers, students and colleagues, many of them never before consulted, but also on hundreds of previously unpublished letters, Leader's biography will for the first time give a full picture of Amis's childhood, school days, life as a teacher, critic, political and cultural commentator, professional author, husband, father and lover.
He explores Amis's fears and phobias, and the role that drink played in his life. And of course he pays due attention to Amis's work. As the editor of The Letters of Kingsley Amis, hailed in The Sunday Telegraph as 'one of the last major monuments to the epistolary art', Leader is more than qualified to be his authorised biographer. His book will surprise, entertain and illuminate.
Review:
Drawing not only on interviews with a range of Amis's friends, relatives, fellow writers, students and colleagues, many of them never before consulted, but also on hundreds of previously unpublished letters, Leader's biography will for the first time give a full picture of Amis's childhood, school days, life as a teacher, critic, political and cultural commentator, professional author, husband, father and lover.
He explores Amis's fears and phobias, and the role that drink played in his life. And of course he pays due attention to Amis's work. As the editor of The Letters of Kingsley Amis, hailed in The Sunday Telegraph as 'one of the last major monuments to the epistolary art', Leader is more than qualified to be his authorised biographer. His book will surprise, entertain and illuminate.
"Leader has surpassed himself... he gives us not only the man, but also his milieu; he gives us not only the compelling virtues but also the staggering flaws. This is the best biography I have read for ages: deeply researched, crisply written and beautifully judged" (Dominic Sandbrook Daily Telegraph)
"Very thorough and very straight-talking. It's also very clear in its aims...He displays the facts of each matter plainly, allowing the reader to deliver their own praise and blame, and counterbalances them with his attention to the work. It's an impressively well-judged response" (Andrew Motion Guardian)
"Marvellous...It has become a fashion to denounce long biographies as telling us more than we need to know, but Leader's is a triumphant vindication of its 900-plus pages. It's a pleasure to read, and the accumulation of detail gives a real sense of a life being led" (Jeremy Lewis Independent)
"This is a book of true stature about a complex talent. Few literary biographies can match it for depth and intimacy" (John Carey Sunday Times)
"Marvellous...I ought to say that this book is 200 pages too long, but as I enjoyed almost every word of it, I can't" (Ferdinand Mount Spectator)
"Very thorough and very straight-talking. It's also very clear in its aims...He displays the facts of each matter plainly, allowing the reader to deliver their own praise and blame, and counterbalances them with his attention to the work. It's an impressively well-judged response" (Andrew Motion Guardian)
"Marvellous...It has become a fashion to denounce long biographies as telling us more than we need to know, but Leader's is a triumphant vindication of its 900-plus pages. It's a pleasure to read, and the accumulation of detail gives a real sense of a life being led" (Jeremy Lewis Independent)
"This is a book of true stature about a complex talent. Few literary biographies can match it for depth and intimacy" (John Carey Sunday Times)
"Marvellous...I ought to say that this book is 200 pages too long, but as I enjoyed almost every word of it, I can't" (Ferdinand Mount Spectator)
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- PublisherVintage
- Publication date2007
- ISBN 10 0099428423
- ISBN 13 9780099428428
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages1008
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The Life of Kingsley Amis
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ISBN 10: 0099428423
ISBN 13: 9780099428428
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