“Who would write who had anything better to do?” asked Lord Byron rhetorically, and in this amusing and informative anthology author Philip Gooden finds hundreds of illuminating anecdotes to reveal what writers got up to when they were not sitting at the typewriter or wielding quill pens. Over 250 stories of famous writers off-duty, from the sixteenth century to the present day, are featured. Among the forty wide-ranging sections, covering famous writers from the sixteenth century to the present day, are “Writers and Money,” “Writers and Crime,” “Writers and Sex,” “Writers and Lost Typescripts,” “Writers and Alcohol,” “Writers and the Public,” “Writers and Inspiration,” and “Writers and Best Sellers.”
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Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
As Gooden (Death of Kings) notes, this work is not a reference book because the 250-plus selections were chosen for their entertainment value rather than their factual accuracy. The entries are arranged chronologically under alphabetical headings e.g., "Addiction," "Forgeries and Frauds," "Last Words," "Obsessions and Eccentricities," "Shakespeariana," and "Wars and Fights." The subjects, mostly British but in some cases Irish and American, all lived between the 16th and 20th centuries. Notes accompanying the entries and an index of writers provide background on the individuals discussed and the circumstances behind each selection. The anecdotes include Agatha Christie's disappearance after her first husband's infidelity, the publication of fraudulent Hitler diaries, and James Boswell's meeting with Samuel Johnson. Because the truth of the anecdotes included has not been verified, this work should be read primarily for amusement. Of some interest to public libraries. Denise J. Stankovics, Rockville P.L., Vernon, CT
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
I TIP MY HAT TO PHILIP GOODEN,
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This review is from: The Mammoth Book of Literary Anecdotes: Over Five Centuries of Recollections, Essays and Quotes (Mammoth Books) (Paperback)
I had great fun with this wonderful book. It contains a wealth of recollections, essays, and quotes spanning five centuries. Read this book if you are curious to learn something you perhaps don't already know about some of our favorite literary giants!
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
Thomas Coryate was one of the earliest travel writers. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Mark Twain, Lord Byron, Samuel Johnson, Edward Trelawny, Oscar Wilde, Conan Doyle, Edmund Gosse, New York, Sir Richard, Anthony Trollope, Ben Jonson, James Boswell, Brief Lives, Earl of Rochester, John Aubrey, Miss Alcott, Miss Bacon, Sir John, Sir Walter Scott, Hall Caine, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Sir Robert, Charles Dickens, Lady Chatterley, Newlands Corner New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Thomas Coryate was one of the earliest travel writers. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Mark Twain, Lord Byron, Samuel Johnson, Edward Trelawny, Oscar Wilde, Conan Doyle, Edmund Gosse, New York, Sir Richard, Anthony Trollope, Ben Jonson, James Boswell, Brief Lives, Earl of Rochester, John Aubrey, Miss Alcott, Miss Bacon, Sir John, Sir Walter Scott, Hall Caine, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Sir Robert, Charles Dickens, Lady Chatterley, Newlands Corner New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 100
books:
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- Records of Shelley, Byron, and the Author (New York Review Books Classics) by Edward John Trelawny on 9 pages
- Father and Son: A Study of Two Temperaments (Classic, 20th-Century, Penguin) by Edmund Gosse on 6 pages
- Recollections of Rossetti by Hall Caine on 6 pages
- Pride and Prejudice (Bantam Classics) by Jane Austen on 5 pages
- Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics) by John Milton on 4 pages
See all 100 books this book cites
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