In One Hundred Autobiographies, poet and scholar David Lehman
applies the full measure of his intellectual powers to cope with a
frightening diagnosis and painful treatment for cancer. No matter
how debilitating the medical procedures, Lehman wrote every day
during chemotherapy and in the aftermath of radical surgery. With
characteristic riffs of wit and imagination, he transmutes the
details of his inner life into a prose narrative rich in incident
and mental travel. The reader journeys with him from the first
dreadful symptoms to the sunny days of recovery. This "fake
memoir," as he refers ironically to it, features one-hundred short
vignettes that tell a life story. One Hundred Autobiographies is
packed with insights and epiphanies that may prove as indispensable
to aspiring writers as Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet. Set against
the backdrop of Manhattan, Lehman summons John Ashbery, Kenneth
Koch, Edward Said, and Lionel Trilling among his mentors.
Dostoyevsky shows up, as does Graham Greene. Keith Richards and
Patti Hansen put in an appearance, Edith Piaf sings, Clint Eastwood
saves the neighborhood, and the Rat Pack comes along for the ride.
These and other avatars of popular culture help Lehman to make
sense of his own mortality and life story. One Hundred
Autobiographies reveals a stunning portrait of a mind against the
ropes, facing its own extinction, surviving and enduring.
General
Imprint: |
Cornell University Press
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
October 2019 |
First published: |
2019 |
Authors: |
David Lehman
|
Dimensions: |
216 x 140mm (L x W) |
Format: |
Hardcover
|
Pages: |
240 |
ISBN-13: |
978-1-5017-4645-1 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
1-5017-4645-6 |
Barcode: |
9781501746451 |
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