Beyond Life [Hardcover]

James Branch Cabell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 25, 2003

An entry in Cabell's fantastic "Poictesme" series.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

COSIMO CLASSICS offers distinctive titles by the great authors and thinkers who have inspired, informed and engaged readers throughout the ages.

Covering a diverse range of subjects that include Health & Science, Eastern Philosophy, Mythology & Sacred Texts, Philosophy & Spirituality, and Business & Economics these newly revitalized treasures are now available to contemporary readers. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Back Cover

BEYOND LIFE is yet another wholly original work from Virginia writer James Branch Cabell. It's an imagined conversation between John Charteris, a successful author, and a young editor. They sit in a library lined with books categorized as unwritten masterpieces or intended editions--a wry commentary on the business of publishing by one of America's overlooked masters.

The two discuss writers and writing, especially those who published in the early 20th century and the demands of the market. Anyone interested in the act of writing and publishing will find an amusing and thought-provoking discussion in BEYOND LIFE. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Wildside Press (August 25, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592242812
• ISBN-13: 978-1592242818
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,804,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Advocacy for the Romantic Basis of Literary Creativity, July 15, 2000

By 

Robert Throckmorton (Las Vegas, Nevada USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond Life (Library Binding)

The story takes place at Willoughby Hall in Fairhaven, the home of John Charteris, a successful USA writer of the early 20th century. A young writer, 22 years JC's junior, pays JC a visit. The time is shortly before the USA entered World War I on April 5, 1917. JC gave his visitor a tour of his library, then seated himself in a swivel chair and delivered an extemporaneous lecture on literary creativity. The visitor took notes of what JC had said and turned them into a book entitled BEYOND LIFE.

"Many a man lives a burden to the earth: but a good book is the precious life-blood of a master-spirit, enbalmed and treasured up on purpose to a life beyond life." That quotation provided the justification for his theory of literary creativity. The young writer summarized JC lecture: "And sometimes he talked concerning men who have made great literature, and spoke sensibly enough although with a pervasive air of knowing more than anyone else ever did. And sometimes he discoursed enigmas, concerning the power of romance, which he pretentiously called "the demiurge," as being a world-shaping and world-controlling principle . . ." "His notion, as I followed him, was that romance controlled the minds of men; and by creating force-producing illusions, furthered the world's betterment with the forces thus brought into being: so that each generation of naturally inert mortals was propelled to a higher sphere and manner of living, by the might of each generation's ignorance and prejudices and follies and stupidities, beneficently directed." JC continually harped on the unfairness inherent in existence and finally admitted that for him the great unsolved question of the universe was: "What is it all up to?"

The work provides a critical commentary on many of the popular USA writers of the early 20th century, many of whom have faded from view or survive as relict faunas nurtured by scholars and antiquarians. Harold Bell Wright (1872-1944) was one of those early writers discussed. Wright was the first USA novelist to earn a mllion dollars from his writings and his "The Winning of Barbara Worth" (1911) was the first USA novel to sell one million copies.

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Heavenly, February 7, 2012

By 

Paul Gardner (NYC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond Life (Paperback)

Izzit a tease or a testament?
Sublime: "The story of Christ is the story of
Cinderella only in more impressive terms."
The root of all evil isn't money, "it's a lack
of imagination."
Literature, love, life viewed with heavenly
jeux d'esprit.

5.0 out of 5 stars Welcome to the Tree of Life, April 7, 2006

By 

Robert S. Lewis (Marietta, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beyond Life (Library Binding)

The book is in 100 chapters. Each Sephira is divided into 10 sephiroth. You can follow the descent of each idea in a way that is both enlightening and enjoyable. He also turns sulpher, mercury, and salt into three approaches to life, the poetic, gallant, and chivalric. To live life fully you would have to do all three at once, of course. This book takes magic out of the temple and into your life. It is very helpful for any autobiographer. Buy yourself a copy of Tamburlaine along with it to save time.