Jeremy's Version [Paperback]

James Purdy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 20, 2005

Gore Vidal's 2005 feature profile of James Purdy in the Sunday New York Times Book Review signaled the long overdue arrival of a major literary cult hero into the American canon. Purdy is one of the last surviving, original, post-war pioneers of transgressive fiction—in line with the Beats, Norman Mailer, Terry Southern, and John Rechy. Jeremy's Vision is the first volume of Purdy's Sleepers in Moon-Crowded Valleys trilogy. It is Purdy's classic novel about a dysfunctional Midwestern family and the struggle between two great dynasties, particularly among the women who rule them.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

James Purdy has written sixteen novels, ten full length plays, three books of short stories and five books of poetry. He has been translated into over 32 languages. Purdy has been profiled by both Gore Vidal and Edward Albee in the New York Times and been featured in Vanity Fair, the Lambda Book Report, and the James White Review. His novel Eustace Chisholm and the Works was named by the Publishing Triangle as one of the Top 100 Gay Novels of the 20th Century. He lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (December 20, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786716703
• ISBN-13: 978-0786716708
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,430,937 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars You Can't Go Home Again, August 3, 2011

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Lynda G. Christian (Burlington, MA United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Jeremy's Version (Paperback)

This book is a kind of autobiography. Purdy describes the desperate lives of the Fergus family, who are, in fact, the Purdy family, and their great disappointments as they struggled to live in the town of Findlay, Ohio, in the 20's and 30's. He wrote the book three years after the death of his older brother from cirrhosis in 1967 in Toledo, Ohio. His brother was named Richard, called Rick in this novel. Richard was a well-known television actor in New York City during the early 50's who was forced to discontinue acting around 1955 due to his drinking. The book is about dreams thwarted by poverty and lack of a male parent. Rick gets a check for $6000 from is aunt which he plans to use to launch his acting career in New York, but he is swindled out of it by his ne'er-do-well father. Everything Rick wants to do to improve himself and follow his passion dies in the killing atmosphere of Findlay.

This book lacks the scatology of Purdy's other books--it is an essay (which happens to be true)on the unpredictability and essential sadness of life. I found it very interesting, particularly since I knew Richard Purdy and found him absolutely fascinating. Despite all his travails, he did make it to New York, but unfortunately he was already in his 40's and only acted for six years. For more information on this actor, click on <...>.