The Invention of Angela Carter
A Biography
-
- $18.99
-
- $18.99
Publisher Description
WINNER OF THE SOMERSET MAUGHAM AWARD
NBCC AWARD FINALIST
WINNER OF THE 2017 SLIGHTLY FOXED BEST FIRST BIOGRAPHY PRIZE
Selected as a Book of the Year 2016 in The Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, Guardian, Financial Times, Spectator and Observer
Angela Carter’s life was as unconventional as anything in her fiction. Through her fearlessly original and inventive books, including The Bloody Chamber and Nights at the Circus, she became an icon to a generation and one of the most acclaimed English writers of the last hundred years. This is her first full and authorised biography.
Edmund Gordon uncovers Carter’s life story – from a young woman trying to write in a tiny bedsit in Tokyo, to one of the most important and daring writers of her day. From a life full of adventure sprang work so fantastic, dazzling and seductive that it permanently changed and reinvigorated British literature. This is the story of how Angela Carter invented herself.
'An exemplary piece of work... Everyone should read it' Spectator
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Few biographies are as consistently spot-on as this one of Angela Carter (1940-1992). Debut author Gordon, a lecturer in English at King's College London who was officially authorized by Carter's estate, uses a wealth of primary sources to trace the life and career of a daring, quirky, and preeminent writer of the late 20th century. As he shows, Carter, whose acclaimed works include the magic realist novel The Magic Toyshop and the retold-fairy-tale collection The Bloody Chamber, represents a distinct type in English history: a person from a modest class background whose innovative art was made possible by the country's post-WWII socialist democratic consensus. After a brief career as a journalist, Carter not only attended university for free, but was paid a stipend. Gordon's construction of Carter as a generous feminist who never lost the common touch comes alive on the page, and, beyond that, Gordon offers enough historic background to vividly evoke a mid- and late-20th-century world. This bio never flags, never condescends, and never loses its pace. One might not read this longish book in a single sitting, but it's a page-turner highly recommended to anyone looking for an entertaining and intelligent read.
