Ted Solotaroff Livres

“Alfred Kazin chose America as his subject, and his intellectual awakening is itself something of an American legend. . . . Ted Solotaroff’s selection of his work is a fitting tribute, a book that will be a starting point for further reading, both of Kazin and of the native writers to whom he devoted himself” — The New Yorker Over the course of 60 years, Alfred Kazin’s writings confronted virtually all of our major imaginative writers, from Ralph Waldo Emerson and Emily Dickinson to James Wright and Joyce Carol Oates and including such unexpected figures as Abraham Lincoln, William James and Thorstein Veblen. It is fair to say that he succeeded Edmund Wilson as the secretary of American letters. At the same time this son of immigrant Russian Jews wrote out of the tensions of the outsider and the astute, outspoken leftist. Editor Ted Solotaroff has selected material from Kazin’s three classic memoirs to accompany these critical writings. The excerpts include sharply etched portraits of the Brownsville, Greenwich Village, Upper West Side, and Cape Cod literary milieus and of such figures as Saul Bellow, Lionel Trilling, Edmund Wilson, and Hannah Arendt. Alfred Kazin's America provides an ongoing example of the spiritual freedom, individualism, and democratic contentiousness that he regarded as his heritage and endeavored to pass on.

The book showcases Solotaroff as a prominent intellectual and influential figure in American literature, highlighting his roles as the founder of the New American Review and editor at HarperCollins. It delves into his personal struggles with love and emotional wounds, illustrating how these experiences intertwine with his significant contributions to culture. Through reflections on his friendships, particularly with Philip Roth, the narrative presents a portrait of a compassionate thinker deeply engaged with the complexities of life and art.

The memoir explores the complex relationship between a son and his domineering father, Ben Solotaroff, whose success in business contrasts sharply with his failure at home. Set against the backdrop of 1930s and '40s America, it delves into themes of ambivalent familial love, the immigrant experience, and the struggles of masculinity. The narrative is marked by a candidness that has garnered critical acclaim, highlighting both literary and moral dimensions. A reading group guide is included for further discussion.

This landmark anthology brings together some of the best stories written in the last thirty years by and about American Jews. Saul Bellow tells a brutal coming-of-age story set in Chicago; Mark Helprin recalls a stint in the Israeli army during the Six-Day War; Grace Paley explores the complex relationship between Jews and Blacks; Philip Roth muses on what life would have been like for Kafka if he had come to America, and maybe dated Roth's aunt        From I.B. Singer's unforgettable depiction of a widower in Miami Beach to Michael Chabon's California-style Jewish wedding and Allegra Goodman's satiric portrayal of a yuppie Orthodox family, a rare view--and one surprising in its diversity--emerges out of the contemporary experience in America.