American Dreamers: Charmian and Jack London [Paperback]

Clarice Stasz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 26, 2000

Jack London's stories of adventure in the frozen landscapes of the Yukon and the steamy islands of the South Seas have captured the imaginations of readers all over the world. Born into the working class, London was a major force in the lively Socialist movement of his day. In 1903 he shocked the morals of his country when he left his wife and two young daughters for a spunky spinster five years his senior. A new breed of woman, Charmian Kitteridge was notorious in the Bay area for daring to ride her horse astride and work in an office, unlike proper women of the day. As his "Mate-Woman," Charmian contributed to Jack's accomplishments -- she was his editor, transcriber, confidante, as well as the model for many of Jack's female characters. Together they overcame threats to their love that stemmed from Jack's alcoholism, infidelities, and illness. This is a compelling portrait that challenges the long"Cheld view of London as a rough, hard-drinking womanizer, and of Charmian as a passive, childish dependent. Instead, this is a love story and a fascinating portrait of a couple whose courage, passion, and vitality remain a model of love fulfilled.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this revisionist, not entirely credible joint biography of the Londons, Stasz, who teaches at Sonoma University in California, draws on the novelist's writings as clues to his personality, challenging the popular concept of him as a manic, brutal alcoholic, and stressing his sensibility and humane qualities. Charmian, in a portrait based in large part on her diaries, emerges not only as the devoted lover, partner and literary model of a famous man, but as a distinct individual who shared Jack's three years of South Sea Island adventures, the inspiration of the Cruise of the Snark , and published two books of her own. She is shown also as sympathetic to his socialist politics and ranching interests. The author attributes the preoccupation with the spiritual in the novelist's later works to disillusion due to rancor and estrangement from his first wife and daughter, to material losses and to the physical ailments fostered by the alcoholism that led to his death in 1916 at age 39. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Jack London has enjoyed something of a critical revival in the last couple of decades, after having been enormously popular early in this century. One very good critical study of London's works is Charles N. Watson's The Novels of Jack London (Univ. of Wisconsin Pr., 1983). Stasz's work, however, focuses on London's wife, Charmianhis mate-woman, as he called her. Relying on a number of unpublished, seldom-seen materials, including 40 years of Charmian's diaries, Stasz briefly covers the young Charmian and Jack and closely examines their 11 years of marriage. Though her style is a bit melodramatic, Stasz's study belongs in extensive literary collections. John Budd, Graduate Lib. Sch., Univ. of Arizona, Tucson
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 396 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse; illustrated edition edition (January 26, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595000029
• ISBN-13: 978-0595000029
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #204,722 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Clarice Stasz is Professor Emerita of History, Sonoma State University. Raised in South Jersey, she has spent her adult life in California. Most of her writings concern the themes of gender, power, and family dynamics. She sees biography as a way to invite readers to enjoy history, a topic so often avoided as a result of the "dates and wars" format that turned them off. She thinks scholars have a responsibility to share their expertise in a straightforward and inviting form. She likes to remind people that self-made people are seldom such, but helped by those around them and the opportunities of their time. She admires Jack London for his crisp and energetic prose, which she hopes has affected her own. Her greatest pleasure as a writer is hearing from readers, whether they agree with her or not.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Away they went, February 2, 2002

By 

Barbara Cleaver (PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Dreamers: Charmian and Jack London (Paperback)

Being an avid biography reader I have developed some prejudices. I like biographies where I can detect that the author liked his subject. It is obvious that although discerning about London's at times haphazard behavior, the author does like and understand her subject. Ms Stasz introduces enough psychological insight to explain this behavior without the explanations becoming oppressive. Both Charmian and Jack become friends you care about. They are developed into vital people whose adventures you share, disasters and all. Another prejudice is readability and this was one of those books I read easily. I would recommend it highly and I don't do that often, unfortunately.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A good book if you happen to like the author's politics, November 27, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: American Dreamers: Charmian and Jack London (Hardcover)

"Patriarchy" "American imperialism" and other post-modern and feminist political buzzwords ruin this book just as much as they ruined Professor Stasz's "Jack London's Women." The Professor's statements (paraphrased) that without Charmian, his mother, his nanny, et al, the world would never have heard of Jack London is bunk, and insulting to a genius of American letters. Further, her baseless assertion that London's first wife and second wife were happier after his death because he was gone from their lives is wishful thinking. I think his widow might have begged to differ with the good Professor. Professor Stasz but destroys her credibility as a scholar by continually showcasing her assumptions about a man she never knew, colored by her politics. I'll never waste my time on her work again.