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Anais Nin Reader

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ANAIS NIN READER is a sampling of the works of the late Anais Nin, most famous for her erotica (which is not included in this volume) and her diaries. An eight-page forward by Philip K. Jason, who served as editor, is included. Jason argues that Nin's literary career, which began in the 1930s, did not come to renown until the 1960s because of its unusual nature. Nin's parents were Cuban, she was born in France, and eventually made her home in New York City and Los Angeles, therefore she does not belong to any one national literature (in France she is sometimes referred to as an American writer). In addition, she blurred the lines between prose and poetry, most of her works were autobiographical, and they contained elements of Freudian and Jungian psychological insight that had not yet been embraced by the general public. Anna Balakian's 19-page introduction titled "The Poetic Reality of Anais Nin" follows. Balakian praises Nin's work as visionary in its examination of reality, dreams, the human psyche, and mythology.

Twelve samplings of Nin's work are included. HOUSE OF INCEST, WINTER OF ARTIFICE, UNDER A GLASS BELL, CHILDREN OF THE ALBATROSS, SEDUCTION OF THE MINOTAUR, and COLLAGES are collected in the section of the book devoted to fiction. D.H. LAWRENCE: AN UNPROFESSIONAL STUDY, Nin's Preface to TROPIC OF CANCER, a review of Otto Rank's THE ID OF DOSTOEVSKY, THE NOVEL OF THE FUTURE, and passages from THE DIARY OF ANAIS NIN VOL. II round out the non-fiction portion.

Andrew Parodi