Kirkus Star
THE KIRKUS STAR
Awarded to Books of Exceptional Merit

BROWSE BOOK REVIEWS




Henry James


Cover art for PORTRAIT OF A NOVEL
NONFICTION
Released: Aug. 27, 2012

"Not for all readers, but Gorra's approach will appeal to scholars, fans of the James family, and lovers of important novels and those who create them."
Gorra (English/Smith Coll.; The Bells in Their Silence: Travels Through Germany, 2004, etc.) blends a focused biography of Henry James (1843–1916) with the story of his composition of The Portrait of a Lady (1881). Read full book review >
Cover art for HENRY JAMES
NONFICTION
Released: Nov. 20, 2007

"James's relentless work habits produced a frequently stunning oeuvre. His biographer's focus on the novelist's daily rounds in an otherwise quiet life is just as relentless and demanding, but far less artful."
This sequel to Henry James: The Young Master (1996, etc.) chronicles, in numbingly Jamesian detail, the expatriate writer's attempt, in his social life and his work, to create a venue for "large & confident action--splendid & supreme creation." Read full book review >
Cover art for THE UNCOLLECTED HENRY JAMES
FICTION
Released: March 1, 2004
edited by Floyd R. Horowitz

" Still, the tenacious reader alone will have to determine whether and which of these frothy stories is really the work of the great Henry James."
Twenty-four stories, newly attributed to the young Henry James although unsigned by him, range from the slight and sentimental to the pleasingly melodramatic. Read full book review >
Cover art for NOVELS 1896-1899
FICTION
Released: March 1, 2003

"But Maisie is not to be missed."
This fourth volume of the Library's ongoing edition of The Master's complete novels includes four that immediately preceded his later masterpieces. Read full book review >
Cover art for A PRIVATE LIFE OF HENRY JAMES
NONFICTION
Released: April 1, 1999

"Although Gordon works hard to detach Minny and Fenimore from James's shadow, she can't quite unravel his strategies to keep his private life private. (16 pages b&w photos, not seen)"
A sharply observed but ultimately frustrated view of the Master, as reflected through the lives of one woman who inspired his art and another who shared in his dedication to fiction. Read full book review >
Cover art for HENRY JAMES
NONFICTION
Released: Oct. 1, 1996

"Too bad his biographer can't claim the same. (16 pages b&w photos, not seen)"
 Novick, who previously dissected the life of Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. Read full book review >