20th Century History

An extraordinary and hugely topical story of a Jewish man's passion for the Arab world. he Orientalist is the extraordinary story of a Jewish man's passion for the Arab world...

Anyone who cares to understand the cultural ferment of America in the later twentieth century must know of the writings and lives of those scruffy bohemians known as the Beats....

With an Introduction by Michael Irwin, Professor of English Literature, University of Kent at Canterbury Originally published as a biography of Thomas Hardy by Florence, his widow, this 'Life' is...

A charming, funny, poignant collection of twenty-three letters from Marcel Proust to his upstairs neighbour 102 Boulevard Haussmann, an elegant address in Paris's eighth arrondissement. Upstairs lives Madame Williams, with...

The definitive portrait of one of the twentieth century's most towering figures- her writing and her radical thought, her public activism and her private face. Susan Sontag was our last...

In this biography of W.B. Yeats (1865-1939) the author shows him through a life of tumultuous creativity through which he strove to bring new meaning to poetry, vision and politics....

This Companion provides a guide to queer inquiry in literary and cultural studies. The essays represent new and emerging areas, including transgender studies, indigenous studies, disability studies, queer of color...

Some of the most innovative and spell-binding literature has been written for young people, but only recently has academic study embraced its range and complexity. This Companion offers a state-of-the-subject...

This is a new edition of the first volume of the biography of the poet Robert Graves, giving an account of his early development. The author - the poet's nephew,...

'A trained scout will see little signs and tracks, he puts them together in his mind and quickly reads a meaning from them such as an untrained man would never...

Many years after the downfall of Oscar Wilde, Alfred Douglas, hoping to boost sales of his autobiography, asked Bernard Shaw to write the preface. An unlikely but enduring friendship developed...

This biography presents a richer and more comprehensive account of Thomas Hardy's life than has previously been available, as well as a more complex, balanced, and sympathetic view of Hardy...

Tells the story, via the letters they wrote to each other, of the relationship between Evelyn Waugh, author of "Brideshead Revisited", and Lady Diana Cooper, actress and hostess. The two...

With this second volume of autobiography Penelope Mortimer covers the three decades, from the acceptance of her first novel in 1945 ("intended as an immense historical saga about the collapse...

Gentle chaos sets in when the absent-minded Mr Pim calls in to see George Marden, bearing some innocent news... George is a fine upstanding citizen and a stickler for doing...

Lolita: on the cusp between fashion and cinema, childhood and adolescence, capriciousness and sensuality... The figure of the 'Lolita' embodies one of the most fascinating, but at the same time...

The fascinating and heartwarming true story of one of the world's most beloved authors. In this inspiring book, fans of the Harry Potter series get to see their favourite author...

An essential new translation of the author's complete, uncensored diaries - revealing the idiosyncrasies and rough edges of one of the twentieth century's most influential writers Dating from 1909 to...

A landmark anthology of extraordinary Russian writers, revealing the full story of the emigre experience in their own words Fleeing Russia amid the chaos of the Russian Revolution and subsequent...

An expansive collection of George Orwell's writing on the down and out The vivid, impassioned writings collected together in this powerful volume chronicle Orwell's first-hand experiences of life among the...

The 'invigorating', 'stupendous' and 'exhilarating' guide (Observer) to the beguiling form which has attracted many of our most beloved writers 'It is hard to know how it could possibly be...

The radical, relatable, and playful love story between two extraordinary twentieth-century writers, revealed in selected letters and diary entries. 'I am reduced to a thing that wants Virginia. I composed...

The Sunday Times no. 1 memoir now in paperback The Pigeon Tunnel, John le Carre's memoir and his first work of non-fiction, is a thrilling journey into the worlds of...

Elizabeth Smart's passionate fictional account of her intense love-affair with the poet George Barker, described by Angela Carter as 'Like Madame Bovary blasted by lightening ... A masterpiece'. One day,...

Over seventy years since his premature death, George Orwell (1903-50) has become one of the most significant figures in western literature. His two dystopian masterpieces, Animal Farm (1945) and Nineteen...