Mary MacLane Livres

The original, little-seen unedited version of the 1902 classic that began the confessional blog genre, as its author intended it, together with illuminating notes that trace the complex references through the range of classic and popular literature mastered by a 19-year-old girl in Butte, Montana who attained international notice under the book's altered title, "The Story of Mary MacLane." All expurgations and editings have been removed, making this edition unique among all those currently on offer.-- Amazon

“Anyone who reads her will never forget her voice.” - Biographile She’s been called first in many things - the first blogger, the first New Woman, the first female proto-surrealist, the first screen writer/star to break the fourth wall and directly address her audience (in 1917’s ground-breaking "Men Who Have Made Love to Me"). In her final book, Mary MacLane is the first media icon to destroy the celebrity distance and expose her inmost doubts, her hopes, her conflicted sexual history, the inner worlds of a creative personality - all in visionary prose unlike anything before or since. With her first book - written in 1901 at age nineteen - she was hailed as a marvel by the likes of H.L. Mencken, Clarence Darrow, and Harriet Monroe. She went on to become a pioneering newswoman, gambler extraordinaire, and bon vivant, to influence Gertrude Stein, inspire F. Scott Fitzgerald, be puzzled over by Mark Twain, and upon her death in 1929 be eulogized as “an errant daughter of literature ... the first of the self-expressionists, and also the first of the Flappers,” as the creator of “that revolution in manners, that transvaluation of values in the female code of behavior known as the Roaring Twenties.” This edition - fully annotated, with an illuminating introduction by Michael R. Brown, foremost MacLane scholar in the world today - conveys the full complexity and potency of Mary MacLane’s final self-expression.

With her first book - written in 1901, at age nineteen - she was hailed as a marvel by the likes of H.L. Mencken, Clarence Darrow, and Harriet Monroe. She went on to become a pioneering newswoman, gambler extraordinaire, bon vivant, and a star of the silent screen. She influenced Gertrude Stein, inspired F. Scott Fitzgerald, was puzzled over by Mark Twain, and upon her death in 1929 was eulogized as "an errant daughter of literature ... the first of the self-expressionists, and also the first of the Flappers," as the creator of "that revolution in manners, that transvaluation of values in the female code of behavior known as the Roaring Twenties." In this authoritative critical edition, the best of Mary MacLane returns to print. With the complete text of her striking first book (with all expurgated passages restored), a selection of her colorful newspaper feature articles, a full-length 1902 interview with the enigmatic author, notes, and a bibliography, Tender Darkness: A Mary MacLane Sampler reacquaints the reading public with a literary genius who took on the establishment - and won.

»Letzten Endes bin ich eine ausdrücklich vernünftige Frau. Nur dass Vieles, worauf ich in meinem Inneren stoße, knirscht, unerklärlich ist und nicht zusammenpasst. Ich bin so verlassen, als hätte ich keinen menschlichen Platz auf dieser Erde. Meine Tage sind so still, als lebte nur ich auf der Welt.« – MARY MACLANE Mary MacLane wünschte sich mit 19 Jahren nichts sehnlicher, als die Enge ihrer Heimatstadt in der amerikanischen Provinz zu verlassen. Mit 36 Jahren kehrt sie nun nach Montana zurück; eine turbulente und glamouröse Zeit in den Künstlerkreisen an der Ostküste liegt hinter ihr. Die Stadt hat sich nicht verändert, und doch ist nichts mehr wie zuvor. MacLane wendet sich wieder der Form des Tagebuchs zu und scheint darin ihr jüngeres, naiveres Ich direkt anzusprechen. Immer wieder parodiert sie sich selbst mit melancholischer Ironie und legt eine so unbestechliche wie unterhaltsame Bestandsaufnahme vor. Wie in ihrem Debüt widmet sich die 36-Jährige dem eigenen Ich, das sie gerade deshalb virtuos zu feiern weiß, weil sie sich darüber keine Illusionen macht. – Ein Buch über die Herausforderung des Menschen, in der Einsamkeit »Ich« zu sagen und »Ich« zu sein.