Publisher Description
Both in her personal life and in her literature, Doris Lessing broke the rules. Born in Persia and raised in Rhodesia by a hypercritical mother and a father who was shell-shocked during the First World War, she was forever in search of her essential identity. Twice married and divorced before the age of thirty, she moved to Britain with one of her children and little more than an unpublished manuscript in her suitcase. Ardently embracing communism, then feminism, she would discard them both long before their attractions faded for others. As a writer, she consistently charted new territory, most famously with the series of science fiction novels she submitted under a pseudonym. Based on numerous interviews and sources, this is a fascinating portrait of a celebrated literary rebel who continually reinvented herself and the world in her prodigious work.
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“An intelligent account of a passionate writer who broke new ground in writing about contemporary women, sex, and politics. Klein does an excellent job of pointing out the inconsistencies and the connections in Lessing’s life and art…Fans will read this for the gossip as much as the thoughtful analysis.”
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About Carole Klein
Carole Klein (1933–2001) taught English, creative writing, and women’s studies at Goddard College, the State University of New York, and New York University. She was also on the writing faculty of the New School and lectured widely on writing, women writers, women’s issues, and cultural history. Among her best-known works are Aline and Gramercy Park.
About Anna Fields
Jennifer Van Dyck has appeared on Broadway in Hedda Gabler, Dancing at Lughnasa, Two Shakespearean Actors, and The Secret Rapture. She has been in new plays by Keith Bunin, Ellen McLaughlin, Catherine Filloux, Douglas Post, A. R. Gurney, and Albert Innaurato. Her film and television credits include Series 7, States of Control, Bullets over Broadway, numerous Law & Order episodes, Ed, Spin City, and The Education of Max Bickford. Her audiobook narrations have won her three AudioFile Earphones Awards.