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Author, Author
A Novel
by David Lodge
Thronged with vividly drawn characters, some of them with famous names, Author, Author presents a fascinating panorama of literary and theatrical life in late Victorian England. But at its heart is a portrait, rendered with remarkable empathy, of writer Henry James, who never achieved popular success in his lifetime or resolved his sexual identity, yet wrote some of the greatest novels about love in the English language. [Viking]
Viking Books, 352 pages
10/07/2004
$24.95
ISBN: 0670033499
Fiction
General Literature & Fiction
All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...
The Spectator Anita Brookner
This is a compelling book, which reads seamlessly, organically, as a novel. Never has a character -- Henry James himself -- been so well served by an author, paying his dues to a writer who scarcely believed in immortality but who was granted it none the less.
Washington Post Christopher Hitchens
Lodge is very deft in two aspects of his reconstruction: the sexual and the contextual.
Daily Telegraph Philip Horne
A unique achievement ' very different from "The Master," and for my money offering a more biographically persuasive picture of James the artist as well as a more imaginatively lively and profoundly moving one.
The Independent Jonathan Heawood
By charting James's experience of these relationships, Lodge draws out an unfamiliar, but extremely likeable version of the author.
The Independent Peter J Conradi
Witty, humane, full of unshowy imaginative force. Lodge has written a marvellous tragi-comedy about the catharsis of writing, and its costs.
The Nation Brenda Wineapple
Spirited historical fiction.
Booklist Donna Seaman
Lodge's take on James' theatrical adventures is suspenseful and empathetic, and his re-creation of James' colorful milieu, including his quirky family, is vivid. [15 Sept 2004, p.179]
Boston Globe Anna Mundow
Lodge combines wit and erudition here to produce a cunning, audacious portrait.
Daily Telegraph Anthony Thwaite
An odd and brilliant book.
Kirkus Reviews
A must for Jamesians, with a storyline sturdy enough to draw in the unconverted as well.
London Review Of Books Terry Eagleton
Author, Author snatches victory from James's own defeat, bringing his thankless labours to a long-delayed fruition.
New York Review Of Books Rosemary Dinnage
On the whole it works, though there are some longueurs: too much of the overresearched background, at times, and some stiffness in the dialogue.
Publishers Weekly
Meticulously researched but disappointingly tepid.
Entertainment Weekly Mark Harris
Whereas some of Tóibín's language and imaginings reached a state of almost Jamesian grace [in The Master], Lodge's prose in Author, Author is more the diligent work of a quasi-biographer.
The New York Times Sophie Harrison
The events are all faithfully recorded, but the product is less a novel than an assembly of facts about James that yet lacks the security of a biography.
Houston Chronicle Barbara Liss
In his endeavor to present his subject faithfully, even reverently, Lodge sacrifices his own witty voice. His subject appears devoid of charm.
The Economist
Mr Toibin's book is radically different and by far the more interesting of the two.
The Globe And Mail [Toronto] Annabel Lyon
Lodge is most interesting when he gets into the nitty-gritty details of the business of writing.
The Guardian Alan Hollinghurst
All this is interesting and enjoyable, but one comes to feel more and more that Author, Author is limited, as a novel, by its artless closeness to biography.
San Francisco Chronicle Timothy Peters
Lodge's portrait of James is both unappealing and undramatic, though the fault probably lies more with the subject than with Lodge's efforts as the novelist.
Los Angeles Times Deborah Friedell
To Lodge, James is all artist, all literary ambition, fortunately lacking sexual and romantic desires. But what can a writer do with such a person? You can write criticism of his works, poems in praise of him, but as the hero of a novel, a man without any human complications cannot fail to disappoint.
 The average user rating for this book is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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