Customer Reviews

Tom Stoppard: A Life

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Nadel has clearly done his homework in his reading about the theatre and plays generally. But he also unfortunately, and probably in order to fill in many gaps, provides us with far too many of unnecessary details-- such as the street number of the house where Stoppard's father was born, but little valid information about Tom Stoppard as an an author,-- though we're given much useless information about other characters- or the very plays he's supposed to explore for and with us. If you haven't read all the plays, you will find the book heavy, literally and figuratively.

Praise, when given, often seems grudging-- we are told, in the acknowlegments, that the playright was generous, as told Nadel by Stoppard's sister. But that generosity isn't shown in the body of the biography , though we're given many petty details, such as Stoppard being often late or disorganized.

In writing his unauthorized bio,Nadel,by definition, had to leave out much: what he was unaware of, what he couldn't explore, and what he didn't understand. He appears unaware of Stoppard's aim of creating a theater of ideas as more than a theater of action.

At over 500 pages, this biography is too long and repetitive. (And surely, somewhere, there could have been traces of humor, considering Nadel was writing about a most witty author...)

Being left with many unanswered questions, in spite of its topic, I found this book disappointing.

Precisely who is the man who gave us such disturbing and erudite plays as "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern," "The Real Thing," and most recently "The Coast Of Utopia"? He is arguably the foremost dramatist of our time, but what makes Tom Stoppard tick?

We'll not find the answers to these questions in a biography of the playwright by Ira Nadel, although that is not due to lack of research as there are almost 100 pages of references and indices included in this rather weighty tome.

Perhaps the best one can do in assessing another human being is to hazard guesses based on observation. There are observations aplenty in this highly readable portrait of an enigmatic genius who, almost singlehandedly, has altered the face of 20th century drama.

For Stoppard, born Tomas Straussler in 1937, it has been a far journey from his home in Czechoslovakia to Hollywood, Broadway, and London's West End. Readers take this journey with him, observing Stoddard's evolution into a playwright concerned with morals and politics, noting the ups and downs in his personal life, and seeing his connectedness to his past.

Critic/biographer Nadel has done an exemplary job in documenting the life of a contradictory figure. Yet, the question lingers: precisely who is Tom Stoppard?

- Gail Cooke