Bertram Cope's Year - Fuller, Henry Blake

. .

Résumé :
A literary triumph by a contemporary of Henry James, from Turtle Point Press. Henry Blake Fuller (1857-1929), a contemporary of both James and William Howells, lingers in a kind of literary purgatory. According to Carl Van Vechten, one of Fuller's greatest admirers, he is second only to James in American writing of that period. And it was no less than Edmund Wilson who singled out Bertram Cope's Year, written in 1919 as Fuller's finest work. Yet all this literary pedigree would be meaningless were not this novel so affecting today. Its rich texture and keen observational writing make it a masterpiece of American realism. The novel centers around a young mid-western college professor named Bertram Cope, and involves, among other things, the courtship of Cope by a gay older man. This open homosexuality -- the novel has several other gay characters -- was in fact the reason for the book's obscurity, as it was a taboo topic at the time. Most critics ignored the work outright when it was published, and Fuller later said he wished he had never written it. Only the writer James Huneker came to the novel's defense, comparing Fuller to Stendahl. It is past time to give this wonderful book the audience it so richly deserves....

Biographie:
Henry Blake Fuller was an American novelist and playwright born in 1857, in Chicago, Illinois. He is best known for his contributions to American literature in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly for his realistic portrayals of urban life. Fuller's most notable work, Under the Skylights, explores the lives of diverse characters living in a boarding house in Chicago, reflecting the complexities of social class and individual aspirations. Other significant works include The Cliff-Dwellers, On the Stairs and With the Procession. His writing often delved into themes of identity, ambition, and the challenges of modern urban existence. In addition to his novels, Fuller wrote plays and was involved in various literary and cultural organizations. He was recognized for his contributions by being inducted into the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame. Fuller passed away on 1929, but left a lasting impact on American literature through his insightful depictions of urban life....

Sommaire:
A literary triumph by a contemporary of Henry James, from Turtle Point Press. Henry Blake Fuller (1857-1929), a contemporary of both James and William Howells, lingers in a kind of literary purgatory. According to Carl Van Vechten, one of Fuller's greatest admirers, he is second only to James in American writing of that period. And it was no less than Edmund Wilson who singled out Bertram Cope's Year, written in 1919 as Fuller's finest work. Yet all this literary pedigree would be meaningless were not this novel so affecting today. Its rich texture and keen observational writing make it a masterpiece of American realism. The novel centers around a young mid-western college professor named Bertram Cope, and involves, among other things, the courtship of Cope by a gay older man. This open homosexuality -- the novel has several other gay characters -- was in fact the reason for the book's obscurity, as it was a taboo topic at the time. Most critics ignored the work outright when it was published, and Fuller later said he wished he had never written it. Only the writer James Huneker came to the novel's defense, comparing Fuller to Stendahl. It is past time to give this wonderful book the audience it so richly deserves....