Revolutionary Road, The Easter Parade, Eleven Kinds of Loneliness (Everyman's Library Classics & Contemporary Classics) [Hardcover]

Richard Yates (Author), Richard Price (Introduction)

Book Description

Release date: January 6, 2009 | Series: Everyman's Library Classics & Contemporary Classics

(Book Jacket Status: Jacketed)

Three classic works—including the virtuosic Revolutionary Road, soon to be a major motion picture—that exemplify the remarkable gifts of this great American master.

Richard Yates’s first novel, Revolutionary Road is the unforgettable portrait of a marriage built on dreams that tragically never come to fruition. In The Easter Parade, he tells the story of two sisters whose parents’ divorce overshadows their entire lives. And in the stories in Eleven Kinds of Loneliness, we witness men and women striving for better lives amid discouragement and disillusion.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“To me and to many other writers of my generation, the work of Richard Yates came as a liberating force . . . He was one of the most important and influential writers of the second half of the century.” —Robert Stone

“It is Yates’s relentless, unflinching investigation of our secret hearts, and his speaking to us in language as clear and honest and unadorned and unsentimental and uncompromising as his vision, that makes him such a great writer.” —Richard Russo

About the Author

Richard Yates, born in 1926, was praised as the foremost novelist of the postwar “age of anxiety.” He died in 1992.

Richard Price is the author of seven novels, including Clockers, Freedomland, and Lush Life.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 696 pages
• Publisher: Everyman's Library (January 6, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307270890
• ISBN-13: 978-0307270894
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 1.5 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #214,299 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard Yates was born in 1926 in New York and lived in California. His prize-winning stories began to appear in 1953 and his first novel, Revolutionary Road, was nominated for the National Book Award in 1961. He is the author of eight other works, including the novels A Good School, The Easter Parade, and Disturbing the Peace, and two collections of short stories, Eleven Kinds of Loneliness and Liars in Love. He died in 1992.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The truthteller March 29, 2009

By Nancy E. Patton

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I discovered Richard Yates' work about eight years ago when I was in the US, and have been pressing his books on friends back in Australia ever since. Revolutionary Road is a near-perfect retelling of married life (for some) in the fifties. The soul-lessness of work stations and manipulative bosses resonates today, and the terrible and tragic honesty with which Yates tells his stories has a haunting beauty. Oddly though, not a depressing read as the hope of a better life shines through and readers would have enormous compassion for Frank and April. DiCaprio and Winslett did a sensitive and believable job on screen, but I urge people to read the book to get the real powerful uncompromising story. This particular edition has the bonus of another of Yates' unsurpassed work (The Easter Parade), plus a great selection of his short stories (Eleven Kinds of Loneliness). A great introduction to a master of 20th century American fiction.

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Not for the weak of heart January 13, 2009

By Shane Halton

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Richard Yates was an incredible writer who described his characters with a unstinting, critical eye frequently depicting them as petty, jealous and selfish. At the same he is sympathetic and gives characters ample time to justify their actions both to themselves and those around them. His books are not often easy reads but they are honest and beautifully written.

Also, Raymond Carver learned everything he knew about writing from reading Richard Yates.

29 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Um... February 4, 2009

By Teacher

Format:Hardcover

I'd just like to note the irony in the comment put forth by one of the other reviewers: namely, that the reviewer complains Yates' books are depressing while nevertheless identifying herself as a "World War II enthusiast".