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United States: Essays 1952-1992

Author Gore Vidal
Ebook
Crown
On sale Sep 25, 2018 | 1312 Pages | 978-1-9848-2395-3
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A compilation of 114 classic essays from Gore Vidal. 

"A marvelous compendium of sharp wit and independent judgment that confirms his status as a man of letters."
—Publishers Weekly

From the age of Eisenhower to the dawning of the Clinton era, Gore Vidal’s United States offers an incomparably rich tapestry of American intellectual and political life in a tumultuous period. It also provides the best, most sustained exposure possible to the most wide-ranging, acute, and original literary intelligence of the post–World War II years. United States is an essential book in the canon of twentieth-century American literature and an endlessly fascinating work.
AUTHOR'S NOTE

I wrote the first of these pieces in 1952, the year that Eisenhower was elected president, and the last in 1992, the year of Clinton’s election. The first piece, “The Twelve Caesars,” was written after rereading Suetonius and realizing that I had never before got the point of what he is telling us, not so much about the Caesars as about our common humanity and the nature of power. Apparently, people still miss the point: it took a long time before anyone would publish so “outrageous” a commentary.

This collection represents about two thirds of the essays or pieces that I have published over forty years. They seem to fall naturally into three categories: literature, or the state of the art; politics, or the state of the union; personal responses to people and events, not to mention old movies and children’s books, or the state of being. So, herewith, my three states—united.

G.V. 
December 1992
Copyright © 2001 by Gore Vidal. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
  • WINNER | 1993
    National Book Awards
Gore Vidal (1925–2012) was born at the United States Military Academy at West Point. His first novel, Williwaw, written when he was 19 years old and serving in the army, appeared in the spring of 1946. He wrote 23 novels, five plays, many screenplays, short stories, well over 200 essays, and a memoir. View titles by Gore Vidal

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A compilation of 114 classic essays from Gore Vidal. 

"A marvelous compendium of sharp wit and independent judgment that confirms his status as a man of letters."
—Publishers Weekly

From the age of Eisenhower to the dawning of the Clinton era, Gore Vidal’s United States offers an incomparably rich tapestry of American intellectual and political life in a tumultuous period. It also provides the best, most sustained exposure possible to the most wide-ranging, acute, and original literary intelligence of the post–World War II years. United States is an essential book in the canon of twentieth-century American literature and an endlessly fascinating work.

Excerpt

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I wrote the first of these pieces in 1952, the year that Eisenhower was elected president, and the last in 1992, the year of Clinton’s election. The first piece, “The Twelve Caesars,” was written after rereading Suetonius and realizing that I had never before got the point of what he is telling us, not so much about the Caesars as about our common humanity and the nature of power. Apparently, people still miss the point: it took a long time before anyone would publish so “outrageous” a commentary.

This collection represents about two thirds of the essays or pieces that I have published over forty years. They seem to fall naturally into three categories: literature, or the state of the art; politics, or the state of the union; personal responses to people and events, not to mention old movies and children’s books, or the state of being. So, herewith, my three states—united.

G.V. 
December 1992
Copyright © 2001 by Gore Vidal. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Awards

  • WINNER | 1993
    National Book Awards

Author

Gore Vidal (1925–2012) was born at the United States Military Academy at West Point. His first novel, Williwaw, written when he was 19 years old and serving in the army, appeared in the spring of 1946. He wrote 23 novels, five plays, many screenplays, short stories, well over 200 essays, and a memoir. View titles by Gore Vidal

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