House of Wits
An Intimate Portrait of the James Family
Fisher, Paul
Hardcover
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BOOK SYNOPSIS
An American odyssey that reveals the fascinating complexities of one of historys most brilliant, eccentric, and daring families The James family, one of Americas most memorable dynasties, gave the world three famous children: a novelist of genius (Henry), an influential philosopher (William), and an invalid (Alice) who became a feminist icon, despite her sheltered life and struggles with mental illness. Although much has been written on them, many truths about the Jameses have long been camouflaged. The conflicts that defined one of Americans greatest families homosexuality, depression, alcoholism, female oppressioncan only now be thoroughly investigated and discussed with candor and understanding.
Paul Fishers grand family saga, House of Wits, rediscovers a family traumatized by the restrictive standards of their times but reaching out for new ideas and ways to live. He follows the five James offspring (hotel children, Henry called them) and their parents through their privileged travels across the Atlantic; interludes in Newport and Cambridge; the younger boys engagement in the Civil War; and William and Henrys later adventures in London, Paris, and Italy. He captures the splendor of their era and all the members of the clanbeginning with their mercurial father, who nurtured, inspired, and damaged them, setting the stage for lives of colorful passions, intense rivalries, and extraordinary achievements. House of Wits is a revealing cultural history that revises and completes our understanding of its remarkable protagonists and the changing world where they came of age.
BOOK REVIEWS
Paul Fishers portraits of the famous members of the James household are brilliant; our fascination grows exponentially as he enlarges the frame to include the others. He appreciates the web of characters, the dynamics of influence. Dramatic, richly detailed, House of Wits is a prime contribution to our understanding of this prodigious family.Daniel Mark Epstein, author of The Lincolns: Portrait of a Marriage
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MORE BOOK INFO
ISBN: 0805074902
ISBN(13-digit): 9780805074901
Dewey Decimal: 974.7/10430922
Library of Congress: 2007043214
Book Publisher: Henry Holt & Co
Language: ENG
No. of Pages: 363
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