Pursued by furies: A life of Malcolm Lowry

Biographies & Memoirs

Bowker,Gordon

Arts & Literature

Harpercollins

Malcolm Lowry's classic novel "Under the Volcano" established him as a writer of genius and one of the most original voices of the 20th century. This biography of Lowry looks at how his writing reflected aspects of his own life. An incurable alcoholic from the age of 16, drink and writing were the only two constants in Lowry's life that was as extraordinary as his fiction. He seemed to lurch from one drama to another, including two turbulent marriages, his years as a bohemian writer in London, Paris and Mexico, his struggles with alcohol and his violent and largely unexplained death.

Pursued By Furies Lowry

Flamingo

An authoritative biography of the author of Under the Volcano traces Lowry's turbulent life, from his travels around the world and in and out of bars, clinics, and jail, to his final period of literary activity.

Pursued by Furies: A Life of Malcolm Lowry

St Martins Pr

In this biography of Malcolm Lowry, readers learn of his epic, frustrating story, its contradictions and comedies intact, without distortion or embellishment. Pursued by Furies traces Lowry's mythical life, from his voyage around the world to his respite on the British Columbian waterfront. There he managed to turn his "furies into mercies, " and to turn his experiences in Mexico into his magnificent novel, Under the Volcano.

Traces the life of Durrell, author of "The Alexandria Quartet," and discusses the influence of Eastern religions on his work

Through the Dark Labyrinth: A Biography of Lawrence Durrell

St.Martin's Press

'Adds enormously to our understanding of the man' Evening Standard
George Orwell was one of the greatest writers England produced in the last century. He left an enduring mark on our language and culture, with concepts such as 'Big Brother' and 'Room 101.' His reputation rests not only on his political shrewdness and his sharp satires (Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four) but also on his marvellously clear style and superb essays, which rank with the best ever written. 
Gordon Bowker's new biography includes fascinating new material which brings Orwell'slife into unfamiliar focus. He writes revealingly about Orwell's family background; the lasting influence of Eton on his work and character; his superstitious streak and youthful flirtation with black magic; and his chaotic and reckless sex life, which included at least one homoerotic relationship. It highlights the strange circumstances of his first marriage and provides remarkable new evidence of his experiences in Spain and their nightmarish consequences. It also offers a fresh look at his peculiar deathbed marriage to a woman fifteen years his junior. All this has enabled Bowker to give Orwell's life a brilliantly fresh and distinctive interpretation.

George Orwell

ABACUS +

A revealing new biography―the first in more than fifty years―of one of the twentieth-century's towering literary figures
James Joyce is one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century, his novels and stories foundational in the history of literary modernism. Yet Joyce's genius was by no means immediately recognized, nor was his success easily won. At twenty-two he chose a life of exile; he battled poverty and financial dependency for much of his adult life; his out-of-wedlock relationship with Nora Barnacle was scandalous for the time; and the attitudes he held towards the Irish and Ireland, England, sexuality, politics, Catholicism, popular culture―to name a few―were complex, contradictory, and controversial.
 Gordon Bowker draws on material recently come to light and reconsiders the two signal works produced about Joyce's life―Herbert Gorman's authorized biography of 1939 and Richard Ellman's magisterial tome of 1959―and, most importantly by binding together more intimately than has ever before been attempted the life and work of this singular artist, Gordon Bowker here gives us a masterful, fresh, eminently readable contribution to our understanding, both of Joyce's personality and of the monumental opus he created. 
 Bowker goes further than his predecessors in exploring Joyce's inner depths―his ambivalent relationships to England, to his native Ireland, and to Judaism―uncovering revealing evidence. He draws convincing correspondences between the iconic fictional characters Joyce created and their real-life models and inspirations. And he paints a nuanced portrait of a man of enormous complexity, the clearest picture yet of an extraordinary writer who continues to influence and fascinate over a century after his birth. Widely acclaimed on publication in Britain last year, perhaps the highest compliment paid was by Chris Proctor, of London's Tribune: "Bowker's success is to lead you back to the texts, perhaps understanding them better for this rich account of the maddening insane genius who wrote them."

James Joyce: A New Biography

Farrar. Straus and Giroux

A revealing biography of one of the twentieth century's towering literary figures
James Joyce is one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century, foundational in the history of literary modernism. Yet Joyce's genius was not immediately recognized, nor was his success easily won. At twenty-two the author chose a life of exile; he battled poverty and financial dependency for much of his adult life; his out-of-wedlock relationship with Nora Barnacle was scandalous for the time; and the attitudes he held toward Ireland, England, sexuality, politics, Catholicism, popular culture―to name a few―were complex, contradictory, and controversial. In James Joyce, Gordon Bowker, draws on material recently come to light and reconsiders the two signal works produced about Joyce's life―Herbert Gorman's authorized biography of 1939 and Richard Ellmann's magisterial tome of 1959. By intimately binding together the life and work of this singular Irish novelist, Bowker gives us a masterful, fresh, eminently readable contribution to our understanding both of Joyce's personality and of the monumental opus he created. Bowker goes further than his predecessors in exploring Joyce's inner depths―his ambivalent relationships to England, to his native Ireland, and to Judaism―and uncovers revealing evidence. He draws convincing correspondences between the iconic fictional characters Joyce created and their real-life models and inspirations. And he paints a nuanced portrait of a man of enormous complexity, the clearest picture yet of an extraordinary writer who continues to influence and fascinate more than a century after his birth.

Malcolm Lowry Remembered

Bbc Pubns

Malcolm Lowry was a ferocious malcontent, freewheeling to self-destruction with the help of mescal, cooking sherry, even bottles of skin bracer ... Rarely has a writer so elaborated his own legend as did Lowry. He was mythogenic; not only could he make the wildest nonsense about himself credible, but encouraged others to add to it. This makes him a murderous subject for a biography ... Gordon Bowker is a trustworthy guide. Fabulously methodical in his research, he has traced various members of the Lowry family as well as the writer's first wife. Pursued by Furies is a gigantic tome, but Bowker writes well and keeps the pages turning. This is probably the last word on Lowry and a handsome achievement ... a fine, intelligent biography.' Ian Thomson, Guardian 'Intelligent and painstaking ... Pursued by Furies is a cool, thorough and not uncritical appraisal of a dreadful life and is not likely to be superseded.' Ian Hamilton, Sunday Telegraph 'Gripping and thoroughly engaged ... Lowry's biography won't have to be done again.' Martin Amis, Independent on Sunday

Faber and Faber

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Books by Bowker,Gordon

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Bowker,Gordon. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Pursued by furies: A life of Malcolm Lowry

Pursued By Furies Lowry

Pursued by Furies: A Life of Malcolm Lowry

Pursued by Furies: A Life of Malcolm Lowry

Through the Dark Labyrinth: A Biography of Lawrence Durrell

George Orwell

James Joyce: A New Biography

James Joyce: A New Biography

Malcolm Lowry Remembered

Pursued by Furies: A Life of Malcolm Lowry