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Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage (Western Literature Series)
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eBay item number:255519414577
Item specifics
- Condition
- Artist
- Shillinglaw, Susan
- ISBN
- 9780874179309
About this product
Product Identifiers
Publisher
University of Nevada Press
ISBN-10
0874179300
ISBN-13
9780874179309
eBay Product ID (ePID)
166489300
Product Key Features
Book Title
Carol and John Steinbeck : Portrait of a Marriage
Number of Pages
344 Pages
Language
English
Publication Year
2013
Topic
Women, Personal Memoirs, American / General, Literary
Illustrator
Yes
Genre
Literary Criticism, Biography & Autobiography
Book Series
Western Literature and Fiction Ser.
Format
Hardcover
Dimensions
Item Height
1.1 in
Item Weight
16.1 Oz
Item Length
9.2 in
Item Width
6.4 in
Additional Product Features
Intended Audience
Trade
Reviews
"A fascinating story that needs to be made known widely . . . Not just the story of Carol and her relationship to John, but a new and revealing look at Steinbeck himself. So much is new here, and the manuscript pushes so deep into the lives of the Steinbecks, that it might well become the primary biography of that period."--Jackson Benson, author of John Steinbeck, Writer: A Biography, "Nobody knows more or writes better about the life of Steinbeck than Susan Shillinglaw . . . Her superb scholarship and elegant style are equally evident in Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage , the biography of Steinbeck's marriage to Carol Henning, a Jazz Age rebel with a Great Depression conscience. As Shillinglaw observes, John and Carol were no Scott and Zelda. But their dramatic story book reads like a novel -- unfortunately, one with a similarly unhappy ending." William Ray, Steinbeck Now, "Fascinating as it lays open the background of two intriguing personalities" New York Journal of Books, "Scholars and fans of John Steinbeck are fortunate to have two fine biographies available--Jackson Benson's (1990) and Jay Parini's (1995). . . . And now another indispensable source can be placed beside these classics, Susan Shillinglaw's Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage published by the University of Nevada Press." -- Tom Barden, The Steinbeck Review , Fall 2013, "Shillinglaw -- resident scholar at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas and professor of English at San Jose State -- draws a compelling portrait of this intelligent modern woman." San Jose Mercury News "As biographer Susan Shillinglaw reminds us in her insightful, important, and necessary new work, there was a time when the man who wrote The Grapes of Wrath was a mere struggling writer; an acknowledged talent, yes, but always on the edge of failure with an uncertain future. Thus we have Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage . And in this new book, Shillinglaw makes a powerful case for the idea that Steinbeck's first wife had everything to do with his ability to persevere, to create a body of work that drew notice to his burgeoning talent, and to carry on despite all the pressures (fiscal, psychological, and otherwise) that plague serious writers attempting to emerge. . . . This wonderful new biography offers plenty of echoes of Steinbeck, but its real value is in restoring to memory the voice, style, and persona of Carol Henning Steinbeck." M. J. Moore in Neworld Review, vol. 7 no. 48 , "Nobody knows more or writes better about the life of Steinbeck than Susan Shillinglaw . . . Her superb scholarship and elegant style are equally evident in Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage , the biography of Steinbeck's marriage to Carol Henning, a Jazz Age rebel with a Great Depression conscience. As Shillinglaw observes, John and Carol were no Scott and Zelda. But their dramatic story book reads like a novel'unfortunately, one with a similarly unhappy ending." William Ray, Steinbeck Now, "Fascinating as it lays open the background of two intriguing personalities"-- New York Journal of Books, "Shillinglaw -- resident scholar at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas and professor of English at San Jose State -- draws a compelling portrait of this intelligent modern woman."-- San Jose Mercury News "As biographer Susan Shillinglaw reminds us in her insightful, important, and necessary new work, there was a time when the man who wrote The Grapes of Wrath was a mere struggling writer; an acknowledged talent, yes, but always on the edge of failure with an uncertain future. Thus we have Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage . And in this new book, Shillinglaw makes a powerful case for the idea that Steinbeck's first wife had everything to do with his ability to persevere, to create a body of work that drew notice to his burgeoning talent, and to carry on despite all the pressures (fiscal, psychological, and otherwise) that plague serious writers attempting to emerge. . . . This wonderful new biography offers plenty of echoes of Steinbeck, but its real value is in restoring to memory the voice, style, and persona of Carol Henning Steinbeck."--M. J. Moore in Neworld Review, vol. 7 no. 48 , "Scholars and fans of John Steinbeck are fortunate to have two fine biographies available—Jackson Benson's (1990) and Jay Parini's (1995). . . . And now another indispensable source can be placed beside these classics, Susan Shillinglaw's Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage published by the University of Nevada Press." -- Tom Barden, The Steinbeck Review , Fall 2013, "Shillinglaw presents the first comprehensive portrait of this dynamic couple. Scholars will benefit from the extensive notes and bibliography; others will particularly appreciate the selection of photographs, some of them especially candid and revealing. Highly recommended."-- Choice Magazine, "Nobody knows more or writes better about the life of Steinbeck than Susan Shillinglaw . . . Her superb scholarship and elegant style are equally evident in Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage , the biography of Steinbeck's marriage to Carol Henning, a Jazz Age rebel with a Great Depression conscience. As Shillinglaw observes, John and Carol were no Scott and Zelda. But their dramatic story book reads like a novel -- unfortunately, one with a similarly unhappy ending."--William Ray, Steinbeck Now, "Shillinglaw contends the Pulitzer Prize–winning Grapes of Wrath is their 'shared creation.' She argues that Carol was a much larger influence on the novelist's life and work than has been previously acknowledged. In this lively, absorbing biography, she describes John's and Carol's families, the impact of friends and travel, and the creative process that culminated in John's writing. Carol left few written records or letters, thus her life is portrayed here from previously unavailable scrapbooks, photographs, and poetry. . . . Recommended for Steinbeck enthusiasts as well as readers interested in 20th-century American novelists." Library Journal , Nov. 13, 2013, "Scholars and fans of John Steinbeck are fortunate to have two fine biographies available--Jackson Benson's (1990) and Jay Parini's (1995). . . . And now another indispensable source can be placed beside these classics, Susan Shillinglaw's Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage published by the University of Nevada Press."--Tom Barden, The Steinbeck Review , Fall 2013, "Shillinglaw's primary research makes this book impressive, and her writing is wonderfully clear and effective. A book that will appeal both to sophisticated scholars and the general public. I loved this book!" Melody Graulich, editor of Western American Literature, "Shillinglaw -- resident scholar at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas and professor of English at San Jose State -- draws a compelling portrait of this intelligent modern woman." San Jose Mercury News "The Grapes of Wrath grabs the reader with a singular energy that makes it easy to miss the dedication: 'To CAROL who willed this book.' The Carol in caps is Carol Steinbeck, who not only picked the title, but also rode herd on the manuscript, the research and the hard years of creation in a rare kind of artistic synergy. . . . . In Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage , Susan Shillinglaw fleshes out the book's dedication and gives Carol Henning Steinbeck her full due. This strong-willed, opinionated, forceful, sharp-witted woman was more than just a supportive wife, more than a repressed Zelda Fitzgerald: 'Her story is, in effect, his. His greatest triumph, hers,' Shillinglaw argues." Michael S. Gant, SantaCruz.com "As biographer Susan Shillinglaw reminds us in her insightful, important, and necessary new work, there was a time when the man who wrote The Grapes of Wrath was a mere struggling writer; an acknowledged talent, yes, but always on the edge of failure with an uncertain future. Thus we have Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage . And in this new book, Shillinglaw makes a powerful case for the idea that Steinbeck's first wife had everything to do with his ability to persevere, to create a body of work that drew notice to his burgeoning talent, and to carry on despite all the pressures (fiscal, psychological, and otherwise) that plague serious writers attempting to emerge. . . . This wonderful new biography offers plenty of echoes of Steinbeck, but its real value is in restoring to memory the voice, style, and persona of Carol Henning Steinbeck." M. J. Moore in Neworld Review, vol. 7 no. 48 "A combination of biography, history, psychology and literary observation, this reads, too, like a novel. Be assured that you will want to read again the Steinbeck that you remember as well as his work that you missed. You will wish you had known Carol Henning, but reading this, you will possibly consider her now a friend." Phil Bowhay, Monterey County Herald , "A fascinating story that needs to be made known widely . . . Not just the story of Carol and her relationship to John, but a new and revealing look at Steinbeck himself. So much is new here, and the manuscript pushes so deep into the lives of the Steinbecks, that it might well become the primary biography of that period." --Jackson Benson, author of John Steinbeck, Writer: A Biography, "Shillinglaw's primary research makes this book impressive, and her writing is wonderfully clear and effective. A book that will appeal both to sophisticated scholars and the general public. I loved this book!"--Melody Graulich, editor of Western American Literature, "Shillinglaw contends the Pulitzer Prize-winning Grapes of Wrath is their 'shared creation.' She argues that Carol was a much larger influence on the novelist's life and work than has been previously acknowledged. In this lively, absorbing biography, she describes John's and Carol's families, the impact of friends and travel, and the creative process that culminated in John's writing. Carol left few written records or letters, thus her life is portrayed here from previously unavailable scrapbooks, photographs, and poetry. . . . Recommended for Steinbeck enthusiasts as well as readers interested in 20th-century American novelists." Library Journal , Nov. 13, 2013, "Shillinglaw contends the Pulitzer Prize-winning Grapes of Wrath is their 'shared creation.' She argues that Carol was a much larger influence on the novelist's life and work than has been previously acknowledged. In this lively, absorbing biography, she describes John's and Carol's families, the impact of friends and travel, and the creative process that culminated in John's writing. Carol left few written records or letters, thus her life is portrayed here from previously unavailable scrapbooks, photographs, and poetry. . . . Recommended for Steinbeck enthusiasts as well as readers interested in 20th-century American novelists."-- Library Journal , Nov. 13, 2013, A fascinating story that needs to be made known widely . . . Not just the story of Carol and her relationship to John, but a new and revealing look at Steinbeck himself. So much is new here, and the manuscript pushes so deep into the lives of the Steinbecks, that it might well become the primary biography of that period." --Jackson Benson, author of John Steinbeck, Writer: A Biography, "In Portrait of a Marriage , Shillinglaw sets out to reveal the impact Carol Henning Steinbeck (1906-83) had on John Steinbeck's (1902-68) early works, particularly The Grapes of Wrath . This marks the first time Shillinglaw, or any academic for that matter, has so comprehensively researched the role Carol Steinbeck played in the literary work of her husband. Through extensive research, she tracks the creative synergy of the Steinbeck partnership, which inspired some of the greatest works in the American literary canon."-- Resources for American Literary Study, "Shillinglaw contends the Pulitzer Prize--winning Grapes of Wrath is their 'shared creation.' She argues that Carol was a much larger influence on the novelist's life and work than has been previously acknowledged. In this lively, absorbing biography, she describes John's and Carol's families, the impact of friends and travel, and the creative process that culminated in John's writing. Carol left few written records or letters, thus her life is portrayed here from previously unavailable scrapbooks, photographs, and poetry. . . . Recommended for Steinbeck enthusiasts as well as readers interested in 20th-century American novelists." Library Journal , Nov. 13, 2013, "Scholars and fans of John Steinbeck are fortunate to have two fine biographies available--Jackson Benson's (1990) and Jay Parini's (1995). . . . And now another indispensable source can be placed beside these classics, Susan Shillinglaw's Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage published by the University of Nevada Press."--Tom Barden, The Steinbeck Review , Fall 2013, "Scholars and fans of John Steinbeck are fortunate to have two fine biographies available—Jackson Benson's (1990) and Jay Parini's (1995). . . . And now another indispensable source can be placed beside these classics, Susan Shillinglaw's Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage published by the University of Nevada Press. "[Shillinglaw] brings to this project an intimate familiarity with a wealth of resources—unpublished letters, diaries, interviews, and manuscripts . . . she uses these primary sources to construct a portrait that gives us much new information about Steinbeck's life, including many entertaining anecdotes and stories. But more importantly, for this reviewer at least, I believe she changes how this period of his life and work should be viewed. "Raised in an uptight religious family, Carol rebelled strongly. By the time they met (when she was 23), she was a perfect fit for 26-year-old John. As Shillinglaw puts it : 'She was a poster child for the decade: she smoked freely, swore energetically, and set her own rules. She bought a car. Like John, she could toss down her liquor… .' "Shillinglaw's concentration on the John-Carol relationship changes how we think about what we already know . . . They were the center of a whirlwind of friends, fun, and creativity; then they were isolated as John's mother and father sickened and died; then they shifted focus from the valley of John's childhood to the larger political and economic crisis situation in California; and then, with that shift, he [they] hit a stride of literary achievement that made him a national celebrity. The cliché of fame spoiling the marriage, complete with a Hollywood starlet, applies to the next phase of the story. And finally Shillinglaw lets us know about Carol's life after John. "I finished the book wondering how different Steinbeck's work might have been if the couple had stayed together. With forceful, candid feedback, Steinbeck . . . might have traveled with Charley to Berkeley or the Watts ghetto to see what was really happening in the early 1960s . . . Of course, that didn't happen and his career went the way it went. But Professor Shillinglaw's terrific book did make me think that Carol, to some extent, should have shared the credit for her ex-husband's Nobel Prize. The work he did with her as a 'we' was clearly his greatest." Tom Barden, The Steinbeck Review , Fall 2013, "Impressive . . . Shillinglaw writes with eloquence and grace. . . . Carol Steinbeck . . . has been blessed with a terrific biographer." Publishers Weekly, "Shillinglaw's primary research makes this book impressive, and her writing is wonderfully clear and effective. A book that will appeal both to sophisticated scholars and the general public." --Melody Graulich, editor of Western American Literature , "A fascinating story that needs to be made known widely . . . Not just the story of Carol and her relationship to John, but a new and revealing look at Steinbeck himself. So much is new here, and the manuscript pushes so deep into the lives of the Steinbecks, that it might well become the primary biography of that period." --Jackson Benson, author of John Steinbeck, Writer: A Biography , "Shillinglaw -- resident scholar at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas and professor of English at San Jose State -- draws a compelling portrait of this intelligent modern woman."-- San Jose Mercury News "As biographer Susan Shillinglaw reminds us in her insightful, important, and necessary new work, there was a time when the man who wrote The Grapes of Wrath was a mere struggling writer; an acknowledged talent, yes, but always on the edge of failure with an uncertain future. Thus we have Carol and John Steinbeck: Portrait of a Marriage . And in this new book, Shillinglaw makes a powerful case for the idea that Steinbeck's first wife had everything to do with his ability to persevere, to create a body of work that drew notice to his burgeoning talent, and to carry on despite all the pressures (fiscal, psychological, and otherwise) that plague serious writers attempting to emerge. . . . This wonderful new biography offers plenty of echoes of Steinbeck, but its real value is in restoring to memory the voice, style, and persona of Carol Henning Steinbeck."--M. J. Moore in Neworld Review, vol. 7 no. 48, As portrayed by San Jose State University English professor and Steinbeck expert Shillinglaw ( A Journey into Steinbeck's California ), John Steinbeck's first wife, Carol Henning Steinbeck, was witty, gifted, and fiercely practical. In addition, she loved the limelight and was adept at grand gesture. Her husband, though driven, tended to be moody and self-absorbed. Carol, according to this impressive biography, was also the driving force behind John's political conscience, and assisted him with The Grapes of Wrath ("To Carol who willed it," the dedication reads in part). But the wealth and fame brought by the novel's success also brought disappointment, estrangement, and divorce. "In another era," Shillinglaw writes with eloquence and grace, "[Carol] might have run a small company, shaped something larger than John into a force for good but she could not or would not imagine great things for herself." In later life, Carol Steinbeck took offense at comparisons to Zelda Fitzgerald, but like Zelda, she has been blessed with a terrific biographer. Publishers Weekly , Sept. 16, 2013
Synopsis
Carol Henning Steinbeck, writer John Steinbeck's first wife, was his creative anchor, the inspiration for his great work of the 1930s, culminating in The Grapes of Wrath . Meeting at Lake Tahoe in 1928, their attachment was immediate, their personalities meshing in creative synergy. Carol was unconventional, artistic, and compelling. In the formative years of Steinbeck's career, living in San Francisco, Pacific Grove, Los Gatos, and Monterey, their Modernist circle included Ed Ricketts, Joseph Campbell, and Lincoln Steffens. In many ways Carol's story is all too familiar: a creative and intelligent woman subsumes her own life and work into that of her husband. Together, they brought forth one of the enduring novels of the 20th century.
LC Classification Number
PS3537.T3234
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