Ralph Ellison

A Biography

Arnold Rampersad

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Paperback

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English

Alfred Publishing
15 May 2008

Biography; Biography: general

From the acclaimed biographer and critic, a definitive examination -- based on exclusive, first-time access to Ellison's papers -- of one of the leading American writers of the 20th century. FIRST TIME IN PAPERBACK. NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST.

Ralph Ellison is justly celebrated for his epochal novel Invisible Man, which won the National Book Award in 1953 and has become a classic of American literature. But Ellison's strange inability to finish a second novel, despite his dogged efforts and soaring prestige, made him a supremely enigmatic figure. Arnold Rampersad skillfully tells the story of a writer whose thunderous novel and astute, courageous essays on race, literature, and culture assure him of a permanent place in our literary heritage. Starting with Ellison's hardscrabble childhood in Oklahoma and his ordeal as a student in Alabama, Rampersad documents his improbable, painstaking rise in New York to a commanding place on the literary scene. With scorching honesty but also fair and

compassionate, Rampersad lays bare his subject's

troubled psychology and its impact on his art and on the people about him.

This book is both the definitive biography of Ellison and a stellar model of literary biography.

By: Arnold Rampersad
Imprint: Alfred Publishing
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 202mm, Width: 131mm, Spine: 39mm
Weight: 556g
ISBN: 9780375707988
ISBN 10: 0375707980
Pages: 657
Publication Date: 15 May 2008
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Reviews for Ralph Ellison: A Biography

Startling, illuminating. . . . [Rampersad] treats Ellison as a man, not as a deity. -- The New Yorker Astute . . . revelatory. . . . Consistently intriguing. -- The Washington Post Book World Illuminating and richly reported. . . . Rampersad is uniquely qualified to examine the Ellison case. -- The New York Times Book Review Rampersad is as meticulous as he is graceful. -- Newsday